The Debt Management Office (DMO) has refuted claims that the Federal Government paid N611.71 billion in March 2025 to service a U.S. dollar-denominated bond.
In a clarification released on Thursday, the DMO emphasised that the accurate figure for servicing the domestic U.S. dollar bond during the month in question was N67.988 billion.
“The figure published by the DMO on its website for Q1 2025 as debt service on the U.S. dollar-denominated bond was N67.988 billion and not N611.71 billion. The figure of N611.71 billion quoted by some analysts is the debt service for all outstanding FGN bonds (excluding the U.S. dollar-denominated bond),” the agency stated.
To prevent further confusion, the DMO further explained:
“For the avoidance of doubt, the Q1 2025 domestic debt service figure published on the DMO’s website for Federal Government of Nigeria bonds in March 2025 was N611.71 billion. In the same report, and on a separate line, the debt service for the domestic FGN U.S. dollar bond for March 2025 was N67.988 billion.”
The office also clarified that no principal payments were made toward the U.S. dollar bond during the period. “The bond is to be repaid in full at maturity in 2029,” it added.
As of March 31, 2025, Nigeria’s total public debt stood at N149.39 trillion, representing a 22.8% year-on-year increase from N121.67 trillion recorded in the same period in 2024.
The domestic portion of the debt reached N78.76 trillion, up 20% year-on-year. The Federal Government was responsible for N74.89 trillion of this sum, while state governments and the FCT accounted for N3.87 trillion, down slightly from N4.07 trillion in Q1 2024.
Nigeria’s external debt also saw a sharp increase, hitting N70.63 trillion ($45.98 billion) by March 2025, compared to N56.02 trillion ($42.12 billion) a year earlier.
