Nigeria's total public debt has risen to N152.40 trillion as of June 30, 2025, from N149.39 trillion recorded at the end of March, according to the latest data released by the Debt Management Office (DMO).
The figure represents a quarterly increase of N3.01 trillion, or 2.01%, while in dollar terms, the debt stock climbed from $97.24 billion to $99.66 billion, reflecting a 2.49% rise.
According to the report, external debt rose to $46.98 billion (N71.85 trillion) in June from $45.98 billion (N70.63 trillion) in March.
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Multilateral lenders remain Nigeria's largest creditors, holding a combined $23.19 billion, which accounts for 49.4% of external obligations. The World Bank, through the International Development Association (IDA), is the single largest lender with $18.04 billion outstanding.
Bilateral loans amounted to $6.20 billion, led by the Export-Import Bank of China with $4.91 billion, followed by smaller exposures to France, Japan, India, and Germany.
Meanwhile, commercial borrowings totalled $17.32 billion, nearly all of which are Eurobonds, representing 36.9% of the external portfolio. An additional $268.9 million was owed under syndicated facilities and commercial bank loans.
On the domestic side, Nigeria's debt rose to N80.55 trillion by June, up from N78.76 trillion in March--an increase of N1.79 trillion. Federal Government bonds remained dominant, accounting for N60.65 trillion or 79.2% of total domestic debt. This includes N36.52 trillion in naira-denominated bonds, N22.72 trillion in securitised Ways and Means advances, and N1.40 trillion in dollar bonds.
Treasury bills accounted for N12.76 trillion (16.7%), while Sukuk bonds stood at N1.29 trillion. Other smaller instruments included savings bonds (N91.53 billion), green bonds (N62.36 billion), and promissory notes (N1.73 trillion)--the latter comprising both naira and foreign currency-denominated liabilities converted at the June CBN exchange rates.
Out of the total N152.40 trillion public debt, the Federal Government accounted for N141.08 trillion, representing 92.6% of the total.
This comprised N64.49 trillion in external obligations and N76.59 trillion in domestic debt.
The DMO wrote: "The Foreign Denominated Promissory Notes Outstanding amount of USD850,069,492 and £98,526 as at June 2025 were converted to Naira using CBN Official exchange rate of 1USD to N1,529.2105 and 1GBP to N2,093.9479 as at June 30, 2025."
Concerns over public debt
Daily Trust reports that there have been concerns from experts and Nigerians over the rising public debt even as the federal government plans to borrow more money.
Last week, President Bola Tinubu asked the Senate to approve a fresh external borrowing of $2.3billion.
The President's request was contained in a letter read during plenary by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Tinubu said the new loan is to implement the 2025 Appropriation Act, refinance maturing Eurobonds, and expand Nigeria's debt instruments to include Islamic finance products.
"The 2025 fiscal framework anticipates $9.27bn in new borrowings to address the budget deficit, of which $1.84bn is earmarked for external sources at an assumed exchange rate of N1,500 to the dollar," he said in the letter.
A key element of the plan is the refinancing of Nigeria's $1.118bn Eurobond, issued in 2018 at a coupon rate of 7.625% and due in November 2025.
"This is a standard practice in debt capital markets," the President wrote. "Refinancing through
Eurobonds or syndicated loans will guarantee debt sustainability and boost investor confidence."
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Economist and CEO, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprises (CPPE), Dr. Muda Yusuf, said the devaluation of the naira occasioned by the floating of the exchange rate system had put more pressure on Nigeria's debt profile.
He said, "One important factor that amplified the debt number was the exchange rate. Because if you look at the totality of our debts in dollar terms, you will discover that the difference between where we were and where we are now is not that significant, but because of the naira depreciation, the dollar component of the debt has gone up by almost three times.
"We used the exchange rate of N450/$ before the coming of this administration to convert dollar debt; now we are using N1,540/$ to convert it; that is three times. So, the exchange rate factor is a very big factor in the growth of the debt. The only way to understand this is to look at the DMO figure and check the total debt in dollars."
