Nigeria’s total public debt stock increased to N46.25 trillion or $103.11 billion as of December 2022, representing a N6.69 trillion increase from N39.56 trillion in December 2021.

The Debt Management Office disclosed this on Thursday in a statement, saying the figure represents domestic and external debt stocks of the federal government, 36 states government and the Federal capital territory.

A breakdown of the figure stated that domestic debt, that is, all debt issued in the domestic market, was N27.55 trillion. On the other hand, external debt, debts issued on the international market, stood at N18.70 trillion.

DMO stated that the increase in total public debt stock is connected to new borrowing by FG and state governments, primarily to fund budget deficits and execute projects.

It disclosed that the debt to Gross Domestic Product ratio for December 31, 2022, stood at 23. per cent, an increase from the 2021 figure of 22.47 per cent.

DMO added that the country is still within its self-imposed 40 per cent threshold; the figure is less than World Bank international Monetary Bank recommended 55 per cent threshold.

The DMO statement partly read, “As of December 31, 2022, the Total Public Debt Stock was N46.25 trillion or USD103.11 billion.

“In terms of composition, total Domestic Debt Stock was N27.55 trillion (USD 61.42 billion) while Total External Debt Stock was N18.70 trillion (USD 41.69 billion)”.