President Bola Tinubu has requested the Senate to approve a supplementary external borrowing plan of $20.52 billion and €1.05 billion for 2026–2027 to finance essential infrastructure and improvement initiatives throughout Nigeria.
The request was contained in a letter addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio and browse throughout plenary on Tuesday, in response to News Agency of Nigeria.
Tinubu mentioned the proposed funds would assist key sectors, together with energy, transportation, healthcare, agriculture, schooling, water provide, safety and employment technology, whereas strengthening public monetary administration reforms.
He defined that the borrowing was meant to handle Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit and bridge the funding hole for initiatives thought-about necessary to the nation’s socioeconomic improvement.
Borrowing plan targets nationwide initiatives
Tinubu mentioned the proposed initiatives and programmes have been chosen following technical and financial evaluations, with consideration given to their anticipated contributions to nationwide improvement.
According to the President, a lot of the initiatives could be applied throughout Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
He argued that substantial funding remained crucial to handle longstanding infrastructure challenges and assist financial development.
- “In light of the need for significant infrastructure investment in the country and the vast financial resources needed to address this gap, it has become essential to pursue prudent external borrowings to close the financing shortfall,” Tinubu mentioned.
He urged the Senate to offer the request pressing consideration, saying approval would enable the federal government to satisfy its obligations to Nigerians via well timed fund disbursement and efficient undertaking implementation.
Senate refers request to committees
Akpabio mentioned the borrowing plan had featured within the Federal Government’s beforehand permitted borrowing programme.
- “The borrowing plan is attached, but of course, this was even earlier approved in our budget, and also the external borrowing plan was approved as far back as 2025 to 2027,” the Senate President mentioned.
He subsequently referred the request to the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts for additional legislative consideration, in collaboration with the Committees on Appropriations and Finance.
The committees are anticipated to overview the proposal as a part of the Senate’s consideration of the federal government’s external financing plans.
Nigeria’s public debt continues to rise
The proposed borrowing comes amid a rise in Nigeria’s public debt inventory.
Nigeria’s complete public debt rose to N166.79 trillion as of June 30, 2026, from N159.35 trillion on the finish of March, in response to knowledge from the Debt Management Office (DMO).
Domestic debt accounted for N91.59 trillion, representing 54.91% of the overall debt portfolio.
The nation’s debt inventory has additionally elevated considerably since Tinubu assumed workplace in 2023. DMO knowledge showed that Nigeria’s total public debt stood at N87.38 trillion as of June 30, 2023.
External and home debt have each grown since then. Nigeria’s external debt rose from $42.49 billion in December 2023 to $51.86 billion by December 2025, whereas home debt elevated from N59.1 trillion to N89.4 trillion over the identical interval.
