Nigeria’s external debt stock climbed to $145.02 billion at the end of 2025, representing a 6.6 per cent increase from the previous year, with the World Bank warning that rising debt-servicing obligations and expensive borrowing are putting additional pressure on developing economies.
The development was contained in the World Bank’s International Debt Report 2026, released on Thursday, which examined the external debt positions of low- and middle-income countries as of December 2025.
According to the report, Nigeria’s external debt has increased significantly over the past decade, rising from $83.21 billion in 2015 to $145.02 billion in 2025.
This represents an increase of approximately $61.8 billion within 10 years, reflecting the country’s growing dependence on external financing.
A breakdown of the debt profile showed that Nigeria’s total external debt stood at $145.015 billion, comprising $62.4 billion in public and publicly guaranteed debt, $54.476 billion in private nonguaranteed debt and $28.139 billion in short-term obligations.
The figures indicate that government and government-guaranteed liabilities account for less than half of the country’s external debt, while private sector borrowing and short-term obligations constitute a significant share.
The World Bank explained that public and publicly guaranteed debt covers external obligations owed by government institutions and state-owned enterprises, as well as private sector loans backed by government guarantees.
Private nonguaranteed debt, however, refers to long-term external obligations incurred by private borrowers without government backing.
Beyond the rising debt stock, the report expressed concern over the increasing cost of servicing external obligations, noting that some of Nigeria’s debt-service indicators deteriorated in 2025.
Nigeria’s external debt-to-exports ratio stood at 212 per cent, while its external debt-to-gross national income (GNI) ratio was 51 per cent.
Similarly, the country’s debt-service-to-exports ratio was 19 per cent, while debt service relative to GNI stood at five per cent.
Although the debt-to-exports and debt-to-GNI ratios declined by 4.3 per cent and 6.6 per cent respectively from their 2024 levels, debt service relative to exports increased by 9.6 per cent, while debt service as a proportion of GNI rose by 6.9 per cent.
The figures suggest that despite some improvement in Nigeria’s debt relative to national income and export earnings, the cost of meeting repayment obligations continued to rise.
The report further disclosed that debt-service payments by low- and middle-income countries increased for the fifth consecutive year, reaching $1.4 trillion in 2025.
It attributed the development largely to obligations owed to private creditors, particularly international bondholders.
Between 2022 and 2025, countries covered by the report reportedly paid approximately $436.1 billion more in debt servicing than they received in fresh financing.
However, the World Bank noted that the trend reversed in 2025, when long-term debt flows recorded a net inflow of $45.4 billion, compared with a net outflow of $118.4 billion in 2024.
