Nigeria’s Debt To GDP Ratio Drops to 18.99% , As Worries Over Debt Service/Revenue Grow

The Debt Management Office (DMP) has disclosed that the nation’s debt stock to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has reduced to 18.99 perce at June 30, 2019 from 19.09 pe as at December 31, 2018.
The agency made this disclosuer while rolling out the Medium–Term External Borrowing Plan of the federal government, which is meant to stimulating economic growth, diversify the economy and bring about investments in human capital.
In the plan, the debt office emphasised that the present level of Nigeria’s debt to GDP ratio was low when compared with many advanced nations like the United States of America (USA).
However, it stressed that where problem lies for the Africa’s largest economy is its debt service to revenue ratio, which the DMO says was high at 57 percent in 2017 and 51 percent in 2018.
This was attributed to the increa the debt stock and relatively hig domestic interest rates, noting it was for this reason government decided to borrow externally through the $30 billion loan it is seeking for approvall from the National Assembly.
“Nigeria has a ceiling of 25 perc on the total public debt stock to which it has operated within,” DMO said in the plan view adding that the service/revenue ratio “provides strong justification for the curren drive to increase oil and non-oil revenues significantly.”