According to the latest data from Nigeria’s Debt Management Office (DMO), every Nigerian now carries an approximate debt burden of N620,000 per capita.
This figure is based on Nigeria’s total public debt, which reached N134.297 trillion as of the second quarter of 2024 (June 2024).
With Nigeria’s population estimated at 216.7 million by the National Bureau of Statistics, the debt per capita has risen to around N619,501, indicating the average share of debt for each citizen based on the country’s latest debt levels as reported by the DMO.
Breaking down the debt, Nigeria’s domestic debt currently stands at N71.2 trillion, while its external debt amounts to N63 trillion. Out of the external debt total, Nigerian states are responsible for N7.1 trillion, whereas the federal government holds a significantly larger share at N55.8 trillion.
For domestic debt, the states owe N4.2 trillion, and the federal government’s domestic debt obligation has grown to N66.9 trillion.
The country’s overall debt of N134 trillion marks a notable increase of N13 trillion from the N121 trillion reported in March 2024, just three months earlier.
This rising debt is intensifying calls for the Nigerian government to reduce its reliance on borrowing as a means to fund national expenditures and development projects.
