Peter Obi Raises Alarm Over Nigeria’s Mounting Debt Burden

Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has issued a strong warning over Nigeria’s surging debt profile, cautioning that the country’s growing fiscal imbalance poses a threat to future generations and the wellbeing of its citizens.

Obi’s concerns, shared via a statement on his X handle, follow the Senate’s recent approval of a fresh round of external and domestic borrowings. The newly approved loans include $21 billion, €2.2 billion, and ¥15 billion, alongside a domestic bond issuance of N750.98 billion and a €65 million grant for the 2025–2026 fiscal cycle.

“With an already existing public debt of about N149.39 trillion as at the first quarter of 2025, adding the approved loans of about N37.2 trillion brings our current total debt to about N187 trillion, with concerns that our debt might likely be over N200 trillion by the end of 2025,” Obi stated.

He expressed concern that Nigeria is “accumulating exponential levels of unsustainable debt with little or nothing to show for it in critical areas such as education, healthcare, electricity generation, and security.”

Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, further highlighted that with Nigeria’s pre-rebased GDP at N269.2 trillion (approximately $180 billion), the nation’s total borrowing now represents nearly 70% of that figure. Even after the recent GDP rebasing to N372.8 trillion (around $243.7 billion), the debt-to-GDP ratio remains troubling at 50.16%—the highest in the country’s history.

He pointed to a year-on-year debt increase of N27.72 trillion and a quarterly rise of N4.72 trillion, noting that despite the rising borrowings, “key development metrics remain stagnant or deteriorating.”

On security, Obi said the government’s budget for defence ballooned from N2.98 trillion in 2023 to N4.91 trillion in 2025, yet insecurity persists. “Over 10,217 deaths and 672 villages have been sacked within a two-year span,” he said.

He also lamented the country’s crumbling infrastructure, citing the vast majority of Nigerian roads—about 135,000 out of 195,000 kilometres—as still unpaved. Electricity generation, he noted, continues to hover below 5,000 megawatts, despite serving a population of over 200 million.

Addressing poverty and hunger, Obi pointed to staggering statistics showing that 133 million Nigerians—63% of the population—live in multidimensional poverty. He referenced a report from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), which recorded the deaths of 652 children in Northern Nigeria due to malnutrition, particularly in Katsina State.

“This is a country blessed with enormous resources, yet nobody should go to bed hungry,” he said. “A persistent deficiency in leadership has thrown the majority of our citizens into increasing poverty.”

While acknowledging that borrowing can serve as a useful economic tool, Obi stressed the need for responsible fiscal management.

“Borrowing is not inherently detrimental if targeted at productive, high-impact investments with transparent and measurable outcomes,” he said. “This pattern of borrowing without accountability and transformational impact is simply mortgaging the future of our children. The government should show minimum consideration for the future of young and unborn Nigerians.”

He called for sweeping reforms in the country’s financial management, urging leaders to block revenue leakages, eliminate wasteful expenditure, and invest in the Nigerian people.

“It is time to stop this fiscal indiscipline,” Obi declared. “We must build a New Nigeria, where leadership is responsible, development is people-centred, and every kobo borrowed or spent delivers measurable impact.”