Nigeria’s total debt stock is set to rise to N155.1 trillion, following an additional $6 billion loan request by President Bola Tinubu, hurriedly approved by the Senate yesterday.
The $6 billion loan at an exchange rate of N1,400 per dollar, adds N8.4 trillion to the country’s debt stock which stood at N146.69 trillion at the end of 2025, to N155.1 trillion.
Experts, however, warned that the new borrowing comes with huge foreign exchange risks and will lead to worsening of the federal government’s debt service-to-revenue ratio, which is estimated at 60 per cent by the end of 2025.
The approval for the $6 billion yesterday came barely three and half hours after the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, read the letter from the President, seeking the approval.
The Senate approved the loans, following the presentation and consideration of the report by Senator Aliyu Wammakko, Chairman, Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts.