Nigeria’s Public Debt Stock Increased By 10.73 Per Cent In Q4 2023 – NBS Reports

According to the Nigerian Domestic and Foreign Debt Report for Q4 2023 released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in Abuja, Nigeria’s public debt stock rose from N87.91 trillion (114.35 billion dollars) in the third quarter of 2023 to N97.34 trillion (108.23 billion dollars) in the fourth quarter of 2023.

The report highlighted a 10.73% increase in the country’s public debt stock, which comprises both external and domestic debt.

Specifically, external debt was recorded at N38.22 trillion (42.50 billion dollars) in Q4 2023, while domestic debt amounted to N59.12 trillion (65.73 billion dollars),

“However, the share of external debt to total public debt stood at 39.26 per cent in Q4 2023, while domestic debt was recorded at 60.74 per cent,” the NBS reported.

The bureau’s breakdown by state revealed that Lagos State had the highest domestic debt of N1.05 trillion in Q4 2023, with Delta following closely behind at N373.41 billion. Jigawa had the lowest domestic debt at N42.76 billion, while Kebbi’s debt stood at N60.69 billion.

Furthermore, Lagos State also had the highest external debt at 1.24 billion dollars, with Kaduna State coming in second at 587.07 million dollars.

“Borno recorded the lowest external debt with 20.49 million dollars, followed by Yobe with 21.49 million dollars,” the NBS stated.