Nigeria’s public debt has surged to N101 trillion, fueled by recent borrowings totaling $4.95 billion from the World Bank over the past year.

This increase, coupled with anticipated loans worth $4.4 billion, has raised concerns about the sustainability of the country’s debt and the escalating costs of servicing external debt.

According to data from the Debt Management Office (DMO), Nigeria’s public debt was approximately N97 trillion as of December 2023.

The substantial rise in debt has been driven by multiple loans from international lenders to fund various socio-economic projects.

In the past year, the World Bank has approved several loans for Nigeria, aimed at addressing critical infrastructure and social issues.

On June 9, 2023, the World Bank approved a $750 million loan to enhance Nigeria’s power sector performance.

On June 27, 2023, a $500 million loan was approved to scale up the Nigeria for Women Programme.