Debt stock grows 3.9% quarter-on-quarter, driven by increased domestic and external borrowing, with total debt now split 53.27% domestic and 46.73% external as of December 2025.

Nigeria’s total public debt rose to N159.28 trillion as of December 31, 2025, according to the latest data released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) on Tuesday.

The figure increased from N153.29 trillion in September 2025, representing a quarter-on-quarter rise of N5.98 trillion or 3.9%.

Year-on-year, the debt stock rose by N14.61 trillion or 10.1%, from N144.67 trillion in December 2024.

In dollar terms, total public debt increased from $94.23 billion to $110.97 billion, a gain of $16.75 billion.

The DMO said the December 2025 figures are provisional and were converted using the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official exchange rate of N1,435.2571/$, compared to N1,474.85/$ used for September 2025.

Domestic debt rose to N84.85 trillion in December 2025, from N81.82 trillion in September 2025, and N74.38 trillion in December 2024.

The Federal Government accounted for N80.49 trillion of domestic debt, while states and the Federal Capital Territory owed N4.36 trillion.

External debt stood at N74.43 trillion in December 2025, up from N71.48 trillion in September 2025 and N70.29 trillion in December 2024.

In dollar terms, external debt rose from $48.46 billion to $51.86 billion over the period.

The Federal Government accounted for N66.27 trillion of external debt, while states and the FCT accounted for N8.16 trillion.

Domestic debt accounted for 53.27% of total public debt, while external debt made up 46.73%.