Nigeria’s total public debt stock rose to N166.79tn as of June 30, 2026, with domestic obligations accounting for N91.59tn, representing 54.91 per cent of the country’s total debt portfolio.
The latest debt figures released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) showed that Nigeria’s total public debt stood at $120.93bn when measured in United States dollar terms.
The dollar-denominated debt comprised $54.52 billion in external debt and $66.41bn in domestic debt.
The DMO said the external debt component was converted at the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official exchange rate of N1,379.1842 to the dollar as of June 30, 2026.
The figures underscore the dominant role of domestic borrowing in Nigeria’s overall public debt structure, with obligations owed within the country accounting for more than half of the total debt stock.
The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) remained the largest debtor, accounting for the bulk of both domestic and external obligations during the period under review.
According to the DMO data, the Federal Government’s external debt stood at N65.77tn, representing 39.44 per cent of the country’s total public debt.
States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), on the other hand, accounted for N9.42 trillion in external debt, equivalent to 5.65 per cent of the overall debt stock.
On the domestic side, the FGN accounted for N87.00tn, representing 52.16 per cent of Nigeria’s total public debt.
States and the FCT owed N4.59 trillion in domestic debt, which amounted to 2.75 per cent of the total public debt portfolio.
The combined figures indicate that the Federal Government accounted for approximately N152.77tn of Nigeria’s N166.79tn total public debt, while the states and FCT accounted for about N14.01tn.
The distribution shows that the Federal Government remains the dominant borrower across both major components of the country’s debt portfolio, particularly in domestic borrowing.
Of the N91.59tn domestic debt stock, the Federal Government accounted for N87.00tn, meaning that most domestic obligations within the public debt portfolio were attributable to the FGN.
The external debt position followed a similar pattern, with the Federal Government’s N65.77tn obligation substantially exceeding the N9.42tn owed collectively by states and the FCT.
The DMO’s figures provide a snapshot of Nigeria’s public debt position at the end of the second quarter of 2026 and cover obligations of the Federal Government, the 36 states and the FCT.
In dollar terms, the $120.93 billion total debt stock comprised $66.41 billion in domestic debt and $54.52bn in external debt.
The naira value of the debt portfolio, however, reflects the exchange rate used by the DMO to translate the external component into local currency. The agency applied the CBN’s official exchange rate of N1,379.1842/$ at the end of June 2026.
The composition of the debt stock also highlights the continued importance of domestic financing to government borrowing, as domestic obligations accounted for more than half of the total public debt at the reporting date.
With the Federal Government accounting for the overwhelming share of the debt portfolio, developments in federal borrowing and debt-management operations are expected to remain central to movements in Nigeria’s overall public debt position.
