According to the latest Nigerian Bureau of Statistics data, Nigeria’s public debt increased 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 NBS released its Nigerian Domestic and Foreign Debt Report for Q4 2023 on Tuesday in Abuja, stating that the nation’s public debt stock, comprising external and domestic debt, increased by 10.73% on a quarter-on-quarter basis.
The report indicated that Nigeria’s external debt in Q4 2023 was N38.22 trillion (42.50 billion dollars), while domestic debt stood at 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 report said.
In a breakdown by states, the bureau said that Lagos State recorded the highest domestic debt of N1.05 trillion in Q4 2023, followed by Delta with N373.41 billion.
Jigawa recorded the lowest domestic debt at N42.76 billion, followed by Kebbi at N60.69 billion.
On the contrary, Lagos State recorded the highest external debt with 1.24 billion dollars, followed by Kaduna State with 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.
