Presidential aide Bayo Onanuga has defended Nigeria’s current borrowing level, insisting that the country is not excessively indebted when compared with several other economies.
Onanuga made the remark while reacting to a discussion on X surrounding Nigeria’s debt profile and growing concerns over government borrowing.
According to him, Nigeria remains creditworthy and still has the capacity to secure additional loans, particularly for infrastructure development. He dismissed criticisms over rising debt levels, describing the concerns as misplaced.
The debate began after an X user identified as Akinwumi compared Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio with those of other African countries.
In the post, he wrote:
“Egypt’s total debt is estimated at over $400 billion, with a GDP around $390 billion — debt-to-GDP above 100%.
South Africa’s debt is about $580 billion, with GDP around $420 billion — roughly 135% debt-to-GDP.
Nigeria’s total public debt is about $110 billion, with a GDP around $340 billion — roughly 35% debt-to-GDP.
Yet some people keep shouting that Nigeria is the ‘loan capital of the world.’”
The comparison sparked debate online, with supporters of government borrowing arguing that Nigeria’s debt burden remains relatively lower than that of countries such as Egypt and South Africa.
Responding to concerns about the country’s borrowing trend, Onanuga stated that the criticism reflects what he described as “economic and financial ignorance.”
“Nigeria has not over borrowed compared to countries like Egypt, South Africa and the West African country of Senegal,” he wrote.
“Nigeria is creditworthy and can still take more loans to finance infrastructure. The unwarranted alarm against loans is symptomatic of economic and financial ignorance.”
