By Halimah Olamide
Nigeria’s public debt stock has risen to N134.3 trillion ($91.3 billion) for the second quarter of 2024.
This was contained in a document from the Ministry of Finance, obtained by Naira Metrics.
The figure is a 10.35 percent increase from the N121.7 trillion recorded in the first quarter announced by the Debt Management Office (DMO).
According to the government, the increase is mainly driven by devaluation of the Naira.
The document read: “In Q2 2024, the debt stock grew in naira terms to N134.3 trillion ($91.3 billion) from N121.7 trillion ($91.5 billion) in Q1 2024, driven mainly by exchange rate devaluation. The dollar amount of debt was roughly the same.”
Notably, while the total debt grew in naira terms, the dollar equivalent of the debt remained relatively stable, underlining the impact of currency movements on debt valuation.
According to the report, domestic debt accounted for 53% of the total debt, amounting to N71.2 trillion ($48.4 billion), while external debt made up 47%, equivalent to N63.1 trillion ($42.9 billion).