President asks lawmakers to approve additional foreign borrowing for projects and programmes across key sectors
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has asked the National Assembly to approve a supplementary external borrowing plan of $20.52 billion and €1.04 billion to finance projects and programmes across several sectors of the Nigerian economy.
The president’s request was conveyed in a letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary on Tuesday.
The proposed borrowing, if approved by the National Assembly, would provide additional external financing for government initiatives across designated sectors, although further details on the specific projects, lending sources and repayment terms would be needed to establish the full scope of the plan.
The request now places the proposed external loans before federal lawmakers for consideration in line with the country’s legislative and public borrowing procedures.
The development comes amid ongoing debates over Nigeria’s debt profile, the cost of servicing existing loans and the government’s efforts to mobilise funding for infrastructure and other development priorities.
Approval of the borrowing plan would represent a significant step towards securing the proposed external financing, but the overall implications for public debt and government expenditure would depend on the final terms of the loans, their intended uses and the returns expected from the funded projects.
Further details are expected as lawmakers examine the president’s request.
