Nigeria’s public debt surged from N87.91 trillion (equivalent to $114.35 billion) in the third quarter of 2023 to N97.34 trillion (approximately $108.23 billion) in the fourth quarter of the same year.
This revelation comes from the Nigerian Domestic and Foreign Debt Report for Q4 2023, released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday in Abuja.
The report highlights a substantial 10.73% increase in Nigeria’s public debt stock on a quarter-on-quarter basis, comprising both external and domestic debt.
According to the report, external debt reached N38.22 trillion (about $42.50 billion) in Q4 2023, while domestic debt amounted to N59.12 trillion (roughly $65.73 billion).
The proportion of external debt to total public debt stood at 39.26% during this period, with domestic debt accounting for 60.74%.
Breaking down the data by state, Lagos State emerged with the highest domestic debt of N1.05 trillion in Q4 2023, followed by Delta with N373.41 billion. Conversely, Jigawa had the lowest domestic debt at N42.76 billion, trailed by Kebbi at N60.69 billion.
In terms of external debt, Lagos State led with $1.24 billion, followed by Kaduna State with $587.07 million. On the flip side, Borno recorded the least external debt at $20.49 million, with Yobe closely following at $21.49 million, as reported by the NBS. (NAN)
