Nigeria’s total public debt has increased to N149.39 trillion as of March 31, 2025, according to fresh figures from the Debt Management Office (DMO).
This means the country’s debt grew by N27.72 trillion or 22.8% compared to N121.67 trillion recorded in the same period last year (March 2024).
The latest data also shows a quarterly increase. Between December 2024 and March 2025, Nigeria’s debt rose by N4.72 trillion or 3.3%.
The steady rise in debt is due to new borrowings and the weaker value of the naira, which has made Nigeria’s external debts (debts owed in foreign currencies) more expensive in naira terms.
As of March 31, 2025, Nigeria’s external debt stood at N70.63 trillion (about $45.98 billion). This was up from N56.02 trillion (about $42.12 billion) in March 2024.
That’s a jump of N14.61 trillion or 26.1% in one year. On a quarterly basis, external debt rose slightly by N344 billion or 0.5%, compared to December 2024.
While Nigeria’s foreign debt in dollars increased by around $3.86 billion year-on-year, the much bigger rise in naira terms shows how badly the exchange rate drop has affected the country’s debt figures.
Nigeria’s domestic debt (money borrowed within the country) also went up. By March 2025, it reached N78.76 trillion (about $51.26 billion), compared to N65.65 trillion in March 2024. This shows a rise of N13.11 trillion or 20% over the year.
From December 2024 to March 2025 alone, domestic debt increased by N4.38 trillion or 5.9%.
The Federal Government held the bulk of this debt, with N74.89 trillion, while the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) had a combined debt of N3.87 trillion.
Meanwhile, state-level domestic debt went down slightly from N3.97 trillion in December 2024 and N4.07 trillion in March 2024.
Overall, by the end of March 2025, Nigeria’s debt was almost evenly split: 52.7% domestic debt and 47.3% external debt.
