BENIN CITY – The total debt stock of the federal government has been put at 22.5 trillion naira as at June 2018.
The Director- General (DG), Debt Management Office, (DMO), Patience Oniha made the disclosure while speaking with the Nigerian Observer during the sensitization workshop on sub-national Debt Management for top policy makers in the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, which held in Benin City.
“We publish our debt data quarterly. As at June, the debt stock largely includes the debt of the state governments. The federal government’s debt, as at June is about 22.5 trillion naira, included in that is the domestic debt of state governments and then the external includes the federal and the states and the FCT.”
“The states can’t borrow externally on their own, so the federal government borrows and lends to them. So Nigeria’s total external debt include the states,” she stated.
The DG had earlier at the workshop session announced that the debt stock for the sub national (state governments) grew from N2, 256, 23 billion as at December 2014 to N4, 776.14 billion by June 2018, representing an increase of about 111 per cent.
She remarked that public debt management is dynamic, which makes it imperative to review legal and institutional frameworks for managing debts, and however commended the 36 states governments and the FCT for establishing dedicated Debt Management Units/Departments and to those states that have enacted the required legislations.
Oniha however pointed out that while managing the federal government’s debt, the DMO, also collaborates with and is having some oversight responsibility in the borrowing activities of the state governments.
“It is within this role that the DMO is partnering with the 36 state governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for the purpose of enhancing debt management policies and practices at the sub-national levels.
“DMO’s twin objectives for its activities with sub-national governments are: to build effective debt management institutions and facilitate enactment of appropriate legislations on public debt management,” she affirmed.
She explained that the sensitization programme was in line with the DMO’s partnership with sub-nationals for the purpose of ensuring that debt management at the sub-national level is prudent and that the debt stock is sustainable
“While borrowing is a beneficial fiscal tool for promoting growth and development, we know and have seen instances where the reverse is he case when debt becomes a burden,” she noted.
