110 days to election: Tinubu seeks National Assembly approval for $20.5bn, €1.04bn foreign loans, pushing administration’s total debt near ₦197trn

The proposed loans would fund infrastructure and other development programmes.

Nigeria’s public debt rose to ₦166.79trn as of June 2026.

The latest borrowing request remains subject to legislative approval.

President Bola Tinubu has asked the National Assembly to approve fresh foreign loans worth $20.52 billion and €1.045 billion, less than 110 days to the 2027 general election, as his administration continues to seek external financing for infrastructure and other development projects.

The request was contained in a letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary on Tuesday, October 27, 2026.

Tinubu asked lawmakers to approve the 2026–2027 Supplementary External Borrowing Plan, which he said would finance projects across critical sectors of the economy.

According to the President, the proposed funds would support infrastructure, particularly power, transportation and healthcare, alongside agriculture, education, water supply, security, employment generation and financial management reforms.

He said the projects had undergone technical and economic assessments and were selected based on their expected contribution to national development.

Tinubu also argued that the scale of Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit and the resources required to address it made additional external financing necessary.

The President said most of the proposed projects would be implemented across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, with the expected benefits including job creation, skills development, entrepreneurship, poverty reduction and improved food security.

House of Assembly Following the presentation of the letter, Akpabio referred the request to the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, working with the committees on Appropriations and Finance. The committees were given one week to review the proposal and report back to the Senate.

The request has not yet received final legislative approval. The amount should therefore not be treated as money already borrowed or disbursed.

The latest proposal comes amid a rise in Nigeria’s recorded public debt. According to the Debt Management Office (DMO), the country’s total public debt stood at ₦166.79 trillion as of June 30, 2026, compared with ₦87.38 trillion in June 2023, when Tinubu assumed office.

The difference represents an increase of ₦79.41 trillion, or approximately 90.9 per cent, in the recorded debt stock.

If the latest proposed facilities were approved and fully disbursed, Nigeria’s public debt could approach ₦197 trillion, depending on the exchange rates used and the treatment of the financing arrangements.

However, this projected figure represents Nigeria’s overall public debt, including obligations owed by the Federal Government, the 36 states and the FCT. It is not a calculation of the amount borrowed exclusively by Tinubu’s administration.

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The increase in the recorded debt stock also reflects factors beyond new borrowing, including the naira value of existing foreign-currency obligations and other changes in the debt portfolio.

Tinubu’s administration has previously sought external financing for budget deficits, infrastructure development and the refinancing of existing debt. Some requests have received legislative approval, while others have involved multi-year borrowing plans covering several projects and financing arrangements.

The latest proposal will now undergo legislative scrutiny, with its eventual impact on public debt depending on the amount approved, the facilities actually drawn and the terms of repayment.