Tinubu Warns $11.6bn Debt Service Will Consume Half of Nigeria’s Revenue in 2026

President Bola Tinubu has raised alarm over Nigeria’s growing debt burden, warning that the country will spend $11.6 billion on loan repayments in 2026. He said nearly half of projected revenue will be redirected from industries like steel, textiles, agriculture and digital services into servicing punitive interest rates. Speaking at an Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi, the president criticised the global financial system for treating African nations as high-risk borrowers, regardless of reforms. He argued that inflated borrowing costs are starving Nigeria’s industrialisation efforts and hindering job creation. Tinubu highlighted that recent domestic reforms—such as subsidy removal, exchange rate consolidation and banking recapitalisation—have lowered the debt-to-GDP ratio and bolstered reserves. Yet he warned that without changes to the international financing architecture, Africa cannot compete fairly or build cross-border value chains under the continental free-trade agreement.

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