Debt service accounts for 23.14% of Nigeria’s ₦68.32 trillion 2026 appropriation

Key Takeaways

  • Debt service takes 23.14% of Nigeria’s 2026 budget.
  • Domestic debt service accounts for 64.3% of the debt-service allocation.
  • Domestic debt service is nearly twice the external debt-service allocation.
  • The sinking fund receives just 1.8% of the debt-service allocation.
  • Domestic debt service is more than 35 times the sinking-fund allocation.
  • Debt service totals ₦15.81 trillion in the 2026 budget.

Nigeria’s 2026 budget commits nearly one-quarter of its total appropriation to debt service, making it one of the largest claims on federal resources. Domestic debt accounts for the bulk of this allocation, at nearly twice the external debt-service allocation and more than 35 times the sinking-fund allocation.

At ₦15.81 trillion, the debt-service allocation is also roughly half of the ₦32.29 trillion allocated to capital expenditure. In other words, for every ₦2 budgeted for capital projects, about ₦1 is allocated to servicing debt, highlighting the pressure debt obligations place on the resources available for development spending.

Source:

Debt Management Office, Nigeria

Period:

2026
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