Nigeria’s debt levels remain moderate compared to other African countries, and the country is creditworthy to take additional loans for infrastructure development, presidential aide Bayo Onanuga has said.
Onanuga, who is the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, made the remarks in a post on his X handle while comparing Nigeria’s debt profile with those of Egypt, South Africa, and Senegal.
“Nigeria has not over borrowed compared to countries like Egypt, South Africa and West African country of Senegal. Nigeria is credit worthy and can still take more loans to finance infrastructure,” he wrote.
He also dismissed concerns over Nigeria’s borrowing, describing the criticism as misplaced.
“The unwarranted alarm against loans is symptomatic of economic and financial ignorance,” Onanuga stated.
The statement comes amid ongoing public debate over Nigeria’s rising public debt and the federal government’s borrowing plans to fund infrastructure projects.
According to the Debt Management Office, Nigeria’s total public debt stood at ₦121.67 trillion as of March 31, 2024.
The government has maintained that borrowing is being directed toward capital projects to drive economic growth.
Egypt, South Africa, and Senegal are among African countries with higher debt-to-GDP ratios than Nigeria, according to data from the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.
