Nigeria’s total public debt stock has grown by 90.9 per cent since President Bola Tinubu assumed office. The Debt Management Office puts the figure at ₦166.79 trillion as of 30 June 2026. That is up from ₦87.38 trillion at the end of June 2023.
The federal government accounts for approximately ₦152.77 trillion, or 91.6 per cent of the total. States and the Federal Capital Territory hold the remaining ₦14.01 trillion.
The pace of accumulation is the story. Debt rose from ₦159.35 trillion in March 2026 to ₦166.79 trillion by June. That is an increase of ₦7.44 trillion in one quarter.
External debt climbed from $42.49 billion in December 2023 to $54.52 billion by June 2026, a rise of about 28.4 per cent. Domestic debt rose from ₦59.1 trillion to ₦91.59 trillion over the same period, an increase of roughly 55 per cent.
This mirrors the 2016 recession, when the naira’s depreciation inflated the local-currency value of external obligations. The same dynamic is at work now. The securitisation of ₦23 trillion in Ways and Means advances has also converted previously off-balance-sheet borrowing into recognised public debt.
The Tinubu administration removed the petrol subsidy and unified the exchange rate. Both reforms boosted government revenues. Borrowing continued to rise anyway.
Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Leye Kupoluyi said Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio remained within internationally acceptable thresholds. But he warned that the weak non-oil revenue base and escalating debt-servicing obligations continued to pressure public finances. The Chamber is “more concerned about the debt-servicing cost strangulating capital spending,” he said.
Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise CEO Muda Yusuf described the debt-servicing burden as a structural challenge. “If the government is borrowing at 17, 18, or 20 per cent, that is extremely high,” he said. Yusuf attributed part of the build-up to the naira’s sharp depreciation and the Ways and Means securitisation.
Winners and Losers
Winners: Bondholders, who earn returns on FGN bonds and Treasury bills. The DMO, which demonstrates active debt management. Contractors who benefit from capital expenditure, however constrained.
Losers: Future taxpayers, who inherit the servicing obligation. Capital projects, which lose funding to debt service. The naira, which faces pressure from external debt obligations.
Bottom Line: Debt is not inherently bad. Debt that services itself at the expense of roads, schools and hospitals is a choice. Nigeria has made that choice for three years running.