KEY POINTS
- In 2025, Nigeria paid $2.86 billion in debt service.
- Debt service made up 69.1 percent of all foreign payments.
- Fitch expects repayments to hit $5.2bn this year.
Nigeria spent $2.86 billion on external debt service in the first eight months of 2025, according to Central Bank data released Wednesday. That accounted for 69.1 percent of all foreign payments, underscoring the growing pressure of debt obligations on Africa’s biggest economy.
A year earlier, debt service stood higher in absolute terms at $3.06 billion but represented a similar share 70.7 percent of foreign outflows. The numbers suggest that while Nigeria has cut nearly $200 million from its repayment bill, debt continues to swallow almost three-quarters of its international payments.
Debt service makes it hard to pay for things from other countries
The month-by-month breakdown shows big changes. In March 2025, the number rose to $632 million, which was more than double what it was the year before. In May, it fell 73 percent to $231 million. Other months were just as unstable, which shows how hard it is to estimate Nigeria’s payback timeline.
Debt service dominates Nigeria’s outflows
In eight months, $2.86 billion of $4.14 billion in foreign payments went to debt service. Fitch Ratings expects the figure to rise to $5.2 billion for the full year, including $1.1 billion in Eurobond repayment due in November.
Fitch raises worries about the economy
The ratings agency said that high interest rates, low revenues, and a restricted budget are still big threats. It thinks that government debt will make up around 51 percent of GDP in 2025–2026, and interest payments would take up about half of federal revenue.
