Twenty-six Nigerian states increased their external debt stock by a combined $239 million in the first half of 2025, according to new figures released by the Debt Management Office (DMO). The update showed that the country’s total external debt now stands at $46.98 billion.
Okay News reports that although the combined state debt rose slightly from $4.8 billion to $4.812 billion, the jump was cushioned by aggressive repayments from several heavily indebted states. The figures revealed that while some states took on new loans, others adopted repayment-heavy strategies to reduce their exposure.
Imo recorded the biggest increase, adding $36.2 million in new external loans. Oyo followed closely with $35.7 million, while Kaduna accumulated an additional $33.6 million. Enugu added $27.3 million, and Ogun’s external debt rose by $21.8 million over the six-month period. These five states accounted for a major share of the upward movement in subnational borrowings.
Katsina increased its external debt by $14.2 million, while Borno saw a rise of $8.7 million. Kwara added $6.7 million, Gombe $5.8 million, and Nasarawa $5.7 million. Osun and Plateau added $5.1 million each. The list continued with Akwa Ibom at $4.8 million, Ebonyi at $4.5 million, and Abia at $3.8 million. Yobe, Taraba, and Kogi posted increases of $3.4 million, $3.1 million, and $2.9 million respectively.
The lower end of the list showed more modest additions. Adamawa added $2.1 million, Ondo $2 million, and Niger $1.9 million. Sokoto and Jigawa added $1.2 million each, while Kebbi recorded $1.1 million. The smallest increases were reported in Zamfara at $554,100 and Bayelsa at $438,000.
Despite the fresh borrowing, total state external debt barely moved due to heavy repayments. Eleven states, including the FCT, reduced their obligations, with Lagos, Edo, Rivers, and Bauchi making the largest contributions to the $227 million total repayment.
The DMO also disclosed that the top five indebted states collectively owed N4.66 trillion in Q2 2025. Lagos remained the most indebted with N2.496 trillion, split between N1.04 trillion domestic and N1.456 trillion external debt. Kaduna followed with N1.507 trillion, while Rivers held N327.55 billion. Delta’s total debt stood at N232.16 billion, and the FCT rounded out the group with N101.4 billion after partial repayments.
