The total debt stock of Nigeria is likely to reach N45 trillion as the Debt Management Office (DMO) plans to borrow an additional N6.39 trillion to finance the 2022 budget deficit.

This is according to a DMO document obtained on Friday.

In the document, DMO director-general Patience Oniha explained that the overall deficit in the 2022 budget was N6.30trillion, representing 3.46 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The DMO had earlier revealed that the country’s total debt stock as of December 2021 was N39.55 trillion.

Ms Oniha explained that the budget deficit was to be financed mainly by borrowings from domestic and foreign sources and privatisation proceeds.

She explained, “N2.57 trillion will come from domestic sources, N2.57 trillion from foreign sources, N1.16 trillion from multilateral and bilateral loan drawdowns and N90.7 billion from privatisation proceeds.”

The DMO boss added that the 2022 aggregate federal government’s spending was projected at N17.1 trillion, 18 per cent higher than the 2021 budget.

“Recurrent (non-debt) spending, estimated to amount to N6.9 trillion, is 40 per cent of total expenditure and 20 per cent higher than the 2021 budget,” added Ms Oniha. “Aggregate capital spending of N5.96 trillion is 35 per cent of total expenditure.”

According to the DMO official, debt service in the 2022 budget is N3.6 trillion, making it 21 per cent of total expenditure and 34 per cent of total revenue.

“Provision to retire maturing bonds of N270.7 billion to local contractors is 1.6 per cent of total expenditure. This provision is in line with the federal government’s commitment to offset accumulated arrears of contractual obligation dating back over a decade,’’ she said. 

(NAN)