FG to reduce debt service burden through refinancing

By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief

The Federal Government plans to reduce its current debt service burden by refinancing existing debts.

Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, disclosed this at the opening of the Annual Conference of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) in Abuja on Tuesday.

According to him, “Efforts are underway to refinance expensive debt and thus reduce both the debt service cost and the cost of borrowing.”

The minister noted that while the reforms undertaken by the present administration had significantly raised revenue, debt servicing had also risen sharply.

“Our fiscal position has improved significantly. Revenue has grown by over 70% in nominal terms over the past two years, driven by the liberalisation of the foreign exchange and fuel markets, and automation-led revenue collection under the Renewed Hope Agenda,” Edun said.

“It is, however, important to note that expenditure pressures persist because debt service costs have surged. Treasury bill rates rose from 8% in 2023 to nearly 24%, while external debt service almost tripled from a budgeted ₦2.7 trillion to ₦6.7 trillion in 2024.”

He added that as a resilient and inclusive economy, Nigeria was charting a transformative path toward becoming diversified and globally competitive.

“Our strategic priorities include significant improvement in non-oil export growth, enhancing domestic productivity, and fostering inclusive prosperity by ensuring that vulnerable Nigerians are not left unprotected,” he said.

“We are transitioning to an economy anchored on openness, competition, and efficiency—where the private sector is the engine of growth and the government efficiently plays its role as foreseer and enabler.

“Our growth strategy is centred on productive capital formation through increased private investment. We are working to achieve output growth of 7.0% GDP by 2027/2028, thereby enabling the removal of millions of our citizens from poverty.”

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