Nigeria’s Total Public Debt rose significantly in 2020 after declining steadily for three years since 2017 according to the national Debt Management Office (DMO).
As at last December, the total debt which is a combination of both the federal and state government stock stood at N32.915 trillion.
This information was disclosed in a press release published on its website on Tuesday.
Nigeria’s Total Public Debt as at December 31, 2020 was N32.915 Trillion. The figures include the Debt Stock of the Federal and State Governments, as well as, the Federal Capital Territory.
“It will be recalled that after Nigeria exited recession in 2017, the level of New Borrowing at the Federal Level as shown in the Annual Appropriation Acts, had been declining as part of the Government’s measures to moderate the rate of Growth in the Public Debt Stock in order to ensure debt sustainability.
“New Borrowing to part-finance Budget Deficits had declined steadily from N2.36 Trillion in 2017 to: N2.01 Trillion in 2018, N1.61 Trillion in 2019 and N1.59 Trillion in the first 2020 Appropriation Act. This trend was reversed in 2020 due to the economic and social impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic as New Borrowing in the revised 2020 Appropriation Act was N4.20 Trillion,” The agency indicated.
The DMO also noted that the total debt to the GDP is 21.61% and is within country’s limit of 40%.
“Many countries including the advanced countries also increased their level of borrowing as a result of COVID-19.
“Total Public Debt to Gross Domestic Product as at December 31, 2020 was 21.61% which is within Nigeria’s new Limit of 40%.
“The various initiatives of Government to increase revenues such as the Strategic Revenue Growth Initiative and the Finance Act, 2020, should help shore up Government’s revenue and reduce the Debt Service to Revenue Ratio.”
- Breaking: Ohanaeze President General, George Obiozor, confirmed dead - December 28, 2022
- US to support NDLEA on improved intelligence gathering capacity - December 27, 2022
- Why diversified HIV/AIDS prevention tools matter for women - December 26, 2022
