More than half of the Federal Government of Nigeria’s domestic debt services are services on FGN bonds

Key takeaways:

  • FGN Bonds dominate Nigeria’s domestic debt service payments, rising from 66.6% in 2017 to 87.9% in 2024. This reflects a growing reliance on long-term debt financing.
  • Treasury Bills have seen a sharp decline in their share of domestic debt service, dropping from 30.1% in 2017 to just 6.4% in 2024. This suggests a shift away from short-term debt instruments.
  • Treasury Bonds, which peaked at 14.9% in 2022, also declined to just 5.6% in 2024.
  • By 2021, over 80% of domestic debt service payments were already allocated to FGN Bonds, showing a consistent pattern of prioritisation. The trend has only intensified in subsequent years.
  • The rising dominance of FGN Bonds means Nigeria is locking itself into long-term repayment obligations, potentially increasing the fiscal burden in the future.
  • This trend underscores the need for careful debt management policies to prevent a future where long-term commitments become a burden rather than a stabilising factor. 🚨

Nigeria’s domestic debt service structure has become increasingly dominated by FGN Bonds, which accounted for a staggering 87.9% of total payments in 2024. This is a sharp increase from 66.6% in 2017, reflecting a gradual shift in the government’s debt servicing strategy. The reliance on FGN Bonds has significantly reduced the share of Treasury Bills and Treasury Bonds, which played a more significant role in earlier years.
Between 2017 and 2024, Treasury Bills' share plummeted from 30.1% to just 6.4%, while Treasury Bonds, which peaked at 14.9% in 2022, now make up only 5.6% of the total.

Source:

Debt Management Office (DMO)

Period:

2017 - 2024
HTML code to embed chart
Want a bespoke report?
Reach out
Tags
Related Insights

Nigeria’s outstanding debt to the World Bank has grown nearly 100-fold since 1970, reaching $17.8 billion in 2024
  • Nigeria’s outstanding debt to the World Bank rose from $180 million in 1970 to $17.81 billion in 2024, a nearly 100-fold increase in 54 years.
  • The balance remained below $5 billion until 2013, but more than tripled between 2013 and 2024, signalling accelerated reliance on multilateral credit.
  • From 2020 to 2024, the outstanding debt rose by $6.4 billion, the sharpest five-year surge on record.
  • The figures reflect a steady accumulation of obligations, driven by long-term borrowing and slower repayment relative to disbursement.

Cameroon's outstanding debt surges by 2,310% from 2017, reaching SDR 1.18 billion by 2025
Key Takeaways:
  • Cameroon’s IMF debt decreased from SDR 70.6 million in 2016 to SDR 49.1 million in 2017—a 30% reduction.
  • From 2018 onwards, the country experienced steady increases in outstanding debt.
  • After an initial 30% reduction from 2016 to 2017, debt skyrocketed by 380% in just one year (2017-2018).
  • By March 2025, Cameroon’s outstanding debt had reached SDR 1.18 billion, representing a staggering SDR 1.13 billion increase from its 2017 level.
  • Although the pace of accumulation has moderated in recent years, the overall debt trend remains upward.

Democratic Republic of Congo’s external debt to the IMF increased by 2,482% between 2019 and 2025
Key Takeaways:
  • The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) reduced its external debt significantly from SDR 263 million in 2016 to SDR 69.3 million by 2019.
  • A sharp reversal occurred in 2020, with debt surging by 327% within a single year, from SDR 69.3 million in 2019 to SDR 296.2 million.
  • Over the decade from 2016 to 2025, the country’s debt increased by 580%, reaching SDR 1.79 billion by March 2025.
  • From 2020 to 2025, the DRC has accumulated over SDR 1.49 billion in new debt.

Between Q1 2023 and Q1 2025, South Africa reduced IMF debt by over 75%, with full repayment possible at the rate of SDR 381.4 million quarterly by the end of 2025
Key Takeaways:
  • South Africa’s outstanding debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) decreased from SDR 3.05 billion in March 2023 to SDR 762.8 million by March 2025.
  • The debt level remained unchanged at SDR 3.05 billion through the first three quarters of 2023.
  • Starting in December 2023, South Africa began making consistent quarterly repayments of SDR 381.4 million.
  • This trend demonstrates steady progress in debt reduction and a strengthened commitment to fiscal discipline.
  • The country is potentially on track for full repayment of its debt by the end of 2025.

Kenya’s IMF debt surges by 1,109%, rising from SDR 249 million in March 2020 to over SDR 3 billion in March 2025
Key Takeaways:
  • Between 2016 and 2020, Kenya's debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) declined steadily by 59%, from SDR 609.8 million to SDR 249.9 million.
  • This downward trend reversed dramatically after 2020, with public debt rising to SDR 3.02 billion by March 2025.
  • The most significant annual increase occurred between 2020 and 2021, when debt jumped by 178%.
  • The lowest recorded debt level during the study period was in 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when it fell to approximately SDR 250 million.
  • Kenya’s IMF debt grew more than elevenfold (1,109%) from its 2020 low to its 2025 peak.

Nigeria set to clear IMF debt by mid-2025 after reducing outstanding balance by 87.5% from March 2023 to March 2025
Key Takeaways:
  • Nigeria’s outstanding debt to the IMF has reduced from SDR 2.45 billion in March 2023 to SDR 306.81 million by March 2025.
  • The country has maintained a consistent quarterly repayment pattern, averaging SDR 306.8 million.
  • This steady repayment trend reflects Nigeria’s commitment to managing its external obligations.
  • At the current repayment rate, Nigeria is positioned to fully clear its IMF obligations by mid-2025.

POPULAR TOPICS
SIGN UP TO OUR NEWSLETTER
Get periodic updates about the African startup space, access to our reports, among others.
Subscribe Here
Subscription Form

A product of Techpoint Africa. All rights reserved