Nigeria’s subnational debt landscape witnessed notable movements in the first half of 2025, as 26 states recorded fresh external borrowings totaling $239 million, according to the latest figures released by the Debt Management Office (DMO).
The DMO reported that Nigeria’s total external debt now stands at $46.98 billion. While new borrowings were recorded, aggressive repayments by some of the country’s top-indebted states meant that total state external debt increased only marginally, from $4.8 billion to $4.812 billion.
Imo State led the list of states with rising debt, adding $36.2 million, followed by Oyo with $35.7 million and Kaduna with $33.6 million.
Enugu and Ogun states also recorded substantial increases, contributing $27.3 million and $21.8 million, respectively. Other notable increases came from Katsina ($14.2 million), Borno ($8.7 million), Kwara ($6.7 million), Gombe ($5.8 million), and Nasarawa ($5.7 million).
Smaller increments were recorded in Akwa Ibom ($4.8 million), Ebonyi ($4.5 million), Abia ($3.8 million), and northern states such as Yobe ($3.4 million), Taraba ($3.1 million), and Kogi ($2.9 million). The least additions came from Zamfara ($554,100) and Bayelsa ($438,000).
Despite these increases, 11 states—including Lagos, Edo, Rivers, Bauchi, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) reduced their debt through higher repayments, amounting to $227 million in reductions.
On a broader scale, Nigeria’s total public debt rose to N152.39 trillion in Q2 2025, up from N149.38 trillion in Q1 2025.
The top five indebted states collectively owed N4.66 trillion, with Lagos State remaining the country’s most indebted subnational entity, holding a total debt of N2.496 trillion comprising N1.04 trillion domestic and N1.456 trillion external debt.
Kaduna ranked second with N1.507 trillion in total debt, followed by Rivers (N327.55 billion), Delta (N232.16 billion), and the FCT with N101.4 billion, making it the least indebted among the major borrowers after part of its external debt was repaid.
The DMO’s figures highlight a mixed debt picture for Nigeria’s states, with new borrowing balanced by repayments, reflecting both the financing needs and fiscal management efforts of subnational governments.