Business
Nigeria’s External Debt Stands At $3.75 bn
Nigeria is accumulating fresh debts as its foreign debts stand even at $3.7 billion.
According to Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) reports, Nigeria has since 2006 be accumulating other debts.
In a paper titled: “The Global Financial Crisis and the Nigerian Financial System: The Way Forward” CBN said that the country’s debts has increased in the last two years.
According to the paper delivered by the Director, Research Department, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Charles Mordi, the total debts recorded in 2006 was $3.5 million.
He said that the debts increased to $3.6 billion in 2007 and $3.7 billion in 2008.
Mordi, while giving an overview of the economy vis-à-vis giving the macro-economic indicators over a period of three years, argued that Nigeria’s debts has shot up relative to the economic growth.
His assertion was underscored by economic observers who claimed that Nigeria is yet to learn its lesson in spite of the economic crisis facing it.
They said that Nigeria stands the risk of increasing its debts to several billions of dollars if it failed to exercise caution.
They based their assertions on the fact that the global financial crisis and the attendant reduction in the government’s expenditure would make the federal government to continue to look for external lenders.
The CBN further noted that the exchange rate has remained unstable during this period.
He pointed out that the naira was N128.2 per dollar in 2006 before it experienced an increase in value in 2007 when it exchanged for N117.9 per dollar.
However, the stability enjoyed by the naira was short-lived as it was exchanged for N132.5 per dollar in 2008. Over the period, the naira has continued to fall against the dollar.
Former CBN boss, Chukwuma Soludo, explained that the naira depreciation was as a result of the global economic crisis.
Other economic indices that have experienced instability in the past three years , according to the report, are external reserves, foreign direct investments and gross domestic product (GDP).
The report noted that the external reserves was 42.3 billion dollars in 2006, 51.3 billion dollars in 2007 and 53.0 billion dollars in 2008.
However, the current global financial crisis and the sharp fall in the international prices of crude oil resulted in the reduction of external reserves.
On the foreign direct investment, the country recorded 13.9 billion dollars in 2006, 5.6 billion in 2007 and 5.8 billion last year.
Similarly, the gross domestic product recorded a growth rate of 6.0 per cent three years ago, 6.6 per cent in 2007 and 6.4 percent last year.
The inflation rate has also recorded sharp increase during the period.
The development made federal government to put in place measures to achieve a single digit inflationary rate.
The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has criticised Nigeria’s import ban on 25 categories of goods, claiming that the restrictions limit market access for American exporters.
This is the effect of President Donald Trump’s tariffs introduction on goods entering the United States, with Nigeria facing a 14 per cent duty.
The USTR highlighted the impact of Nigeria’s import ban on various sectors, particularly agriculture, pharmaceuticals, beverages, and consumer goods.
The restrictions affect items such as beef, pork, poultry, fruit juices, medicaments, and alcoholic beverages, which the United States sees as significant barriers to trade.
The agency argues that these limitations reduce export opportunities for United States businesses and lead to lost revenue.
“Nigeria’s import ban on 25 different product categories impacts United States exporters, particularly in agriculture, pharmaceuticals, beverages, and consumer goods.
“Restrictions on items like beef, pork, poultry, fruit juices, medicaments, and spirits limit United States market access and reduce export opportunities.
“These policies create significant trade barriers that lead to lost revenue for United States businesses looking to expand in the Nigerian market”, the agency said .
In 2016, Nigeria implemented the ban on these 25 items as part of efforts to control imports and stimulate local production.
Some of the banned items include poultry, pork, refined vegetable oil, sugar, cocoa products, spaghetti, beer, and certain medicines.
On March 26, 2025, the Federal Government also announced plans to halt solar panel imports to encourage local manufacturing as part of its push for clean energy.
A leading agribusiness strategist and digital agriculture expert, Ayo Oluwa Okediji, has sought cooperative-driven investments in sustaining growth of poultry industry in Nigeria.
He said the poultry industry was at a defining moment and requires urgent structural reforms to secure its future and ensure long-term sustainability.
Speaking on the theme, “Strengthening Poultry Farming Through Cooperative Synergy and Strategic Investments”, at the recently concluded Oyo Mega Poultry Workshop 2025 in Ibadan, Okediji called on poultry farmers, cooperative leaders, financial institutions and policy makers to rethink the existing structure of the poultry sector.
He stressed the need to transition from fragmented, individually-driven operations to well-structured, cooperative-led enterprises capable of attracting sustainable financing and securing long-term viability.
He said, “Our poultry sector cannot thrive on individual effort alone. We need to organise ourselves into cooperative clusters, build strong governance systems and position ourselves to attract the level of investment needed to sustain this industry beyond this generation.”
Drawing on lessons from successful global cooperative models such as Rabobank in the Netherlands and Landus Cooperative in the United States, Okediji introduced the FarmClusters Poultry Model, a locally adapted solution developed by Agribusiness Dynamics Technology Limited (AgDyna), a subsidiary of AgroInfoTech Africa.
According to him, the model is currently being piloted in Oyo State in partnership with PANOY Agribusiness Limited and local poultry cooperatives.
The Rivers State Representative of the Nigeria Chambers of Commerce, Mines, Industries and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Mr. Erasmus Chukwundah, has urged palm oil farmers to consider hybrid seedlings for planting, if they must break even in palm oil business.
Chukwundah said this recently at the Free Oil Palm Business Climate Smart Best Management Practice/Assistance Training organized by Partnership Initiative In Niger Delta (PIND) for Palm Oil Farmers in Elele, Ikwerre Local Government Area.
The Rivers representative said until palm oil farmers begin to consider such hybrid oil palm seedlings, they may not meet up with the daily increasing demand of palm oil in the market.
According to him, the seedlings produce up to 30 bunches at once that ripen same time.
He said PIND decided to partner with Oil Palm Growers Association of Nigeria (OPGAN) to ensure that the message was received by the targeted audience.
According to him, palm oil remained a popular choice of industry operators as it could be converted to many other products such as vegetable cooking oil.
He also noted that products such as motor tyers, marine ropes and others are now gotten from the palm tree.
Chukwundah, who is the immediate past Director-General of Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Mines, Industries, and Agriculture (PHCCIMA), further warned against use of unrecommended fertilisers in growing oil palms.
He noted that such practices could limit its export value or chances as the foreign marketers have a way of detecting such .
He reiterated the need for organic fertilizers, including poultry droppings, to enable them have a natural palm oil.
“People must reduce physical contact with palm oil production. That is why we are campaigning for hydrolic oil mills. The foreign markets are no longer interested in crude method of palm oil production”, he said.
Meanwhile, one of the farmers, Sonny Didia, who appreciated Chukwundah’s commitment towards the concern of farmers, appealed for an urgent need for loan opportunity with low interest rate in order to enable them beat the target.
King Onunwor