Nigeria has repaid $12.56 billion of its external debt in 15 years
Nigeria repaid an average of $368m in external debt every year between 2008 and 2017. In 2018, the payments increased by 217% to $1.47b from $464m in 2017, then dropped by 9.4% in 2019, and has since been on the rise. Here are Nigeria's external debt repayments since 2008.
The Army has been allocated ₦1.50tn, more than half of the top-ten defence allocations, making it the backbone of Nigeria’s security spending.
The Navy (₦443.9bn) and Air Force (₦407.2bn) come next, but together they are far behind the Army.
Institutions like the Defence Intelligence Agency, Training and Doctrine Command, and Defence Missions receive meaningful but much smaller funding, reinforcing their support-role status.
The Defence Space Administration (₦37.3bn) is on the table, but its small size shows Nigeria is only cautiously stepping into cyber- and space-based security.
The Federal Ministry of Finance dominates with ₦16.78 trillion, accounting for nearly ₦1 in every ₦3 spent among the top ministries.
Combined, the ministries of Finance and Budget & Economic Planning control more than 50% of the listed allocations, underscoring the government’s focus on fiscal strategy and economic agenda.
The Works and Defence sectors rank third and fourth, reflecting continuous prioritisation of infrastructure development and national security.
Education and Health, while critical, receive smaller shares, signalling potential pressure points in human capital development funding
