The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, has revealed that Nigeria will borrow N6.17tn next year and will have a total public debt burden of N38tn by December 2021.
The Minister said this on Tuesday in her presentation to the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts.
The Minister stated that the total public debt stock comprising the external and home debts of the federal and state governments and the Federal Capital Territory stood at N31.01tn ($85.90bn) as of June 30, 2020.
According to her, the debt profile “is projected, based on existing approval, to rise to N32.51tn by December 31, 2020 and N38.68tn by December 31, 2021.”
She attributed numerous abandoned road projects across the country to poor funds releases occasioned by dwindling revenue.
Ahmed explained that the current Sukuk fund was N162bn for 45 roads cut across the six geopolitical zones.
The Minister explained that work on the legacy projects, Lagos-Ibadan highway, 2nd Niger Bridge, East-West road, and Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road, were ongoing without stop because funds were available and that they were few.
In her own words, “The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority was assigned four major road projects to do. These projects are Lagos-Ibadan highway, 2nd Niger Bridge, East-West road, and Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road.”
