The 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has raised serious concern over Nigeria’s rising debt burden, warning that the country may owe over N200 trillion by the end of 2025.
In a post made on his X (formerly Twitter) account, Peter Obi said Nigeria’s growing debt was unsustainable and dangerous for the future of the country. His warning comes just a week after the Senate approved a fresh round of external and domestic borrowing.
According to him, the latest approvals include loans of $21 billion, €2.2 billion, and ¥15 billion, as well as a domestic bond of N750.98 billion and a €65 million grant.
Peter Obi explained that as of the first quarter of 2025, Nigeria’s public debt stood at N149.39 trillion. When the newly approved loans amounting to about N37.2 trillion are added, the total debt rises to approximately N187 trillion.
“With an already existing public debt of about N149.39 trillion as at the first quarter of 2025, adding the approved loans of about N37.2 trillion brings our current total debt to about N187 trillion, with concerns that our debt might likely be over N200 trillion by the end of 2025,” he said.
Obi criticised the government for accumulating debt without corresponding improvements in key sectors like education, healthcare, electricity, and security.
“We are accumulating exponential levels of unsustainable debt with little or nothing to show for it in critical areas,” he said.
He also raised alarm over Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio, stating that it has reached its highest level ever. Using the pre-rebased GDP of N269.2 trillion (around $180 billion), Obi said the debt now represents nearly 70% of the country’s economic size. Even after the GDP was rebased to N372.8 trillion (around $243.7 billion), the debt still amounts to over 50% of GDP.
While the government has increased security spending from N2.98 trillion in 2023 to N4.91 trillion in 2025, Obi noted that insecurity has worsened. He cited figures showing over 10,217 deaths and 672 villages sacked across the country in just two years.
Basic infrastructure also remains weak, he added. Out of Nigeria’s 195,000 kilometres of road network, only about 60,000 km are paved. Meanwhile, power supply continues to hover below 5,000 megawatts despite a population of over 200 million people.
Obi also highlighted worsening poverty and hunger. He said 133 million Nigerians about 63% of the population are now classified as multi-dimensionally poor.
He referred to a Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) report that recorded the deaths of 652 children in Northern Nigeria due to malnutrition, with Katsina State being one of the worst-hit areas.
“This is a country blessed with enormous resources, yet nobody should go to bed hungry,” he said. “A persistent deficiency in leadership has thrown the majority of our citizens into increasing poverty.”
He acknowledged that borrowing itself is not the problem, but stressed that loans must be used productively and transparently.
“Borrowing is not inherently bad if it is directed at productive, high-impact investments with clear outcomes,” he said. “But this pattern of borrowing without accountability and transformational impact is simply mortgaging the future of our children.”
Calling for urgent reform, Obi urged the government to cut waste, plug revenue leakages, and invest in human capital development.
“It is time to stop this fiscal indiscipline,” he declared. “We must build a New Nigeria, where leadership is responsible, development is people-centred, and every kobo borrowed or spent delivers measurable impact.”
NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
