The Federal Government has dismissed claims that President Bola Tinubu’s administration borrowed nearly ₦80 trillion within its first three years in office, describing the reports as misleading.
The clarification was made by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, during an economic briefing with the Senate Committee on Finance on Monday.
Lawmakers had sought explanations over reports suggesting that the current administration added about ₦80 trillion to the approximately ₦75 trillion public debt it inherited upon assuming office.
Responding to the concerns, Oyedele said the widely circulated figures do not represent fresh borrowing but largely reflect accounting adjustments resulting from the depreciation of the naira.
“When this administration came into office, public debt was around ₦75 trillion. Many people simply compare that figure with today’s debt stock and conclude that this government has borrowed massively,” he said.
According to the minister, the sharp depreciation of the naira significantly increased the naira value of Nigeria’s existing external debt because the country’s total public debt is officially reported in local currency.
He explained that the revaluation of the foreign currency component of the debt alone added more than ₦40 trillion to the overall debt stock without involving any new borrowing.
“Following the reforms and the depreciation of the naira, the foreign currency component of our public debt had to be revalued because Nigeria reports its debt in naira. That accounting adjustment alone added more than ₦40 trillion to the public debt figure,” Oyedele stated.
The minister further disclosed that another ₦33 trillion was added to the debt profile after the National Assembly approved the securitisation of Ways and Means advances.
He stressed that the securitisation process merely converted existing obligations owed by the Federal Government into formal debt instruments and should not be interpreted as new borrowing.
Meanwhile, members of the Senate Committee on Finance expressed concern over what they described as the poor implementation of capital projects contained in the 2026 national budget, urging the government to improve budget execution to ensure the timely delivery of infrastructure and development programmes.