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Nigeria Owes N35.5trn, As Local Debt Stands At N21trn

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The nation’s public debt stock stood at N35.465trillion as at June 30, Director-General of the Debt Management Office (DMO), Ms. Patience Oniha, has disclosed.
Total public debt is composed of the domestic and external debt of the Federal Government, the 36 state governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Nigeria’s total public debt stock was N33.107trillion or $87.239billion, as at March 31, 2021.
This indicated a N2.358trillion rise in the debt stock from the end of the first quarter of the year to the end of the second quarter.
A breakdown of the public debt figure under review indicated that that external debt was N13.711trillion, representing 38.66 per cent.
On the other hand, domestic debt was N21.754trillion, representing 61.34 per cent of the total stock.
The Federal Government accounted for N11.828trillion of the external debt and N17.632trillion of the domestic debt.
States and the FCT’s external debt stood at N1.883trillion, with a domestic debt stock of N4.122trillion.
The breakdown of the external debt showed that the bulk of the debt is owed to multilaterals (World Bank Group and the African Development Bank Group), which accounted for 54.88 per cent.
The next highest category is the commercial debt (Eurobonds and Diaspora bonds) which accounted for 31.88 per cent; while bilateral (China, France, Japan, India and Germany) stood at 12.70 per cent.
Promissory Notes represent 0.54 per cent.
Oniha explained that the nation had several benefits from going to source funds which included showcasing Nigeria in a positive light in the international financial markets where large pools of capital are available.
In addition, she said, “The sovereign Eurobonds serve as a benchmark on the back of which several local banks have issued Eurobonds. Amongst them are Zenith Bank, Access Bank, UBA, FBN, Ecobank Nigeria and Fidelity Bank. This window opened by the sovereign enabled these Nigerian Banks raise Tier-2 Capital to meet regulatory requirements and enhanced their capacity to lend to, and, support local borrowers.
“Issuing Eurobonds has been a potent tool for building up Nigeria’s External Reserves. A healthy level of External Reserves supports the Naira Exchange Rate and Nigeria’s sovereign rating.
“Raising funds externally through Eurobonds to finance budget deficits reduces the level of sovereign borrowing in the domestic markets. The benefits of this are many: mitigates the risk of crowding out the private sector (more funds available at moderate rates for other borrowers in the domestic economy).
“The Eurobonds are also listed in Nigeria’s two securities exchanges: The Nigerian Exchange Limited and FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited. This increases the size of these exchanges and diversity of instruments listed.
“The Eurobonds are actually issued as part of approved Government Borrowing Plans, usually in the FGN’s annual budgets, for financing capital projects thereby reducing the infrastructure gap.”
The D-G explained that the issues of rising debt, high debt service to revenue ratio and utilization of borrowed funds were germane.
She said that members of the public should not lose sight of the facts which necessitated borrowing which included, “Huge Infrastructure Deficit , Recession (twice in the last six years), Consecutive Budget Deficits, Low Revenue Base, compounded by dependence on one source – crude oil which prices crashed and at a point, at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic had no buyers.”
Oniha stressed that Nigerians must challenge themselves and support the Federal Government on the need to raise revenue.
She noted that the 5 per cent tax as a percentage of the Gross Domestic product (GDP) was too poor for Nigeria and that concerted efforts must be made to increase the nation’s revenue.
The D-G disclosed that work has already started on this, adding the Federal Government debt to the Central Bank of Nigeria which was at about N10trillion at the beginning of the process.
She said, “We are working towards recognizing it, getting the proper approvals to include it in the public debt stock. Where we are is to get the necessary approvals to convert it into a tenured debt.”
On the foreign exchange implications for debt service, especially the fall in the value of the Naira, in recent times, the DMO boss said, “we have initiated actions towards managing that risk.”

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Expert Tasks Government On Civil Maritime Security Unit 

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As part of measures to ensure safety along waterways in Rivers State, a Marintime safety and security expert, Capt. Eke Ifeanyi Laurence, has called for the establishment of a civil maritime And Safety unit in the state.
Laurence, who said this in an exclusive interview with The Tide in Port Harcourt, said the unit should be stationed in jetties across the state.
He said the outfit will not only check insecurity along the maritime environment, but also create both direct and indirect jobs for the teeming unemployed youths of the state.
“My message to the Governor of the state is for the State Government to help train the youths on maritime safety and security, and engage them positively”, he said.
He argued that once this is done the happenings along the waterways, especially the incessant boat mishaps and piracy will be reduced to the barest minimum.
“All of you know about what is happening now, every day you wake up, the first news you hear is boat mishaps.
“Boat capsizes in Bonny, boat capsizes in Nembe, boat capsizes in Andoni. Boat mishaps all over the state and people are dying every day and goods worth millions being lost.
“So, I want the present Government to train our youths and establish a civil maritime safety and security unit. It will be all over the jetties”, he stated.
Lawrence stated the benefits of the proposed agency to include, monitoring and enforcement of compulsory wearing of lifebuoys or life jackets by boat passengers and drivers, generation of over twenty thousand direct and fifty thousand indirect jobs, and bringing the benefits of the Federal Government’s blue economy programme to the state.
He said Rivers State, which is the second largest maritime state in the country after Lagos, should be able to upgrade safety along its maritime environment to international standard, noting that the trend of sea piracy along the Gulf of Guinea is on the rise
According to him, “Rivers State should play a crucial role in preventing the citizens from dying, and goods from getting lost every day”.
The expert, who is the President of El Bravo Marine And Coast Guard Services Limited, said the proposal will also check the incessant fire incidents in Nembe waterside that have cost many lives and other water fronts in the state.
John Bibor
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Bayelsa Recommits To Infrastructure, Sectoral Dev … Rakes In N227.185b From IGR

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The Bayelsa State Government has expressed willingness to continue infrastructure and sectoral development of the state under the leadership of the Senator Douye Diri-led “Prosperity Assured” administration.
Speaking to newsmen, last Friday, in Yenagoa, the state capital, during the October–December 2024 monthly transparency briefing, the State Commissioner for Information, Strategy and Orientation, Mrs. Ebiowou Koku-Obiyai, said the exercise became imperative as Government was ready to update the citizenry on the income and expenditures of the state.
She noted that all ongoing projects under the Governor Diri-led administration would be completed, urging citizens of the state to see and appreciate efforts the Government was making in the provision of critical infrastructure projects and sectoral development in all spheres of the state.
“Transparency briefing, so far so good, is all about reporting back to the citizens of the state the income and expenditures of the Government under the watch of our Dear Governor, the distinguished Senator Douye Diri.
“As a Government we’ve a direction, and if you watch closely you’ll better understand where the Government is going. We’ve earmarked critical projects to execute and key among these projects is the nine storey, new State Secretariat complex, which would make workers more productive and their jobs more worthwhile.
“We’ve issues with power, and very soon we’ll also have our own independent power plant to solve the problem of incessant power blackout in the state”, she said.
Rendering stewardship of financial accruals to the State for the three months of October, November and December 2024, the State Commissioner for Finance, Mr Maxwell Ebibai, gave details of the receipt and expenditures.
 He said in October, Statutory allocation was N509milliin, Derivation was N8.335million, VAT N5.291billion, exchange rate gains -N11.28billion, non-oil revenue – N905m, electronic transfer levy -N175m, while total gross inflow from the Federation account allocation committee (FAAC) for the month, according to the Commissioner, amounted to N26.514billion, just as he said FAAC deductions gulped 1.735b.
He noted that, total net inflow after FAAC deductions stood at N24.779billion, while other receipts were N86.431billion, making sum total of receipt in the month N101.2billion, with  outflows gulping a total of N16.971billion.
Ebibai also declared net balance upon the outflows as N94.238billion, noting that actual recurrent payment took N5.284billion, capital expenditure totalled N38.355billion, while the sum total of both capital and recurrent expenses made in the month amounted to N43.64billion, and balance after capital and recurrent expenditures stood at N50.598billion.
The Finance Commissioner further stated that total balance carried from September to October was N135.446billion, while balance at the close of November was N186.44billikn respectively.
In November, according to the Finance Ministry, gross receipt from FAAC was N37.982,141,546billion, while deductions at FAAC gulped N1.734billion, leaving balance after FAAC deductions at N36.247,717,577billion.
Other receipts for the month of November, including Internally generated revenue (IGR), was N39.254,383billion; cumulative receipt from FAAC and other receipts for the month stood at N75.5billion, while total outflows in November, was N24.275billion; balance before capital and recurrent expenses stood at N51.226billion; the balance after capital and recurrent expenses was N8.302billion; actual capital expenditure gulped N35.8billion; actual recurrent expenditure took N7.1billion, making the sum total of capital and recurrent expenses N42.9billion.
“Balance brought forward from October was N186.44billion, total balance as at the end of November was N194.346billion. Balance at the end of December receipts and expenditures ended in the negative.
“Gross receipts from FAAC in the month stood at N52.269billion, statutory deductions was N1.783billion, revenue from IGR and other sources totalled N35.990billion, while  sum total of receipts in the month amounted to N86.476billion.
“Outflows gulped N17.543billon, balance from FAAC and other receipts before capital and recurrent expenses was N68.932billon, while actual capital expenditure took N62.8billion, recurrent expenditure gulped N6.889billion, bringing total expenditure for the month of December to a total N69.7billion, leaving a negative balance of N773million.
“Balance brought forward from November was N194.3billion, total balance as at January 2025 is N193.573billion”, the Finance Commissioner declared.
Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa
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NDYC Seeks NDDC Commercialisation  … Uncompleted Projects Completion 

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A non-governmental organization, the Niger Delta Youth Coalition, (NDYC), is set to write to the National Assembly for amendment of the Act establishing the Niger Delta Development Commission, (NDDC) to enable it go into the establishment of large scale farming, to meet up its huge financial needs in developing the region.
Founder and National Co-ordinator of the NDYC, Prince Emmanuel Samuel Ogba, who disclosed this in an interview in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, said if amended, it would enable the NDDC to be commercialized in various sectors of its activities, particularly  in agriculture, for internal generation of funds to augment its soaring financial needs.
Prince Ogba, an economist and politician, said to this end, his organization would send a private bill to the National Assembly seeking to amend the 2001 Act establishing the NDDC.
He noted that with the present economic challenges in the country, and to provide food for the populace, there is urgent need for the NDDC to be empowered by law to go into agriculture.
Ogba said, “if this happens, it would also provide more employment opportunities for the youths, as most of them would work in the farms, including staff of the Commission”.
The NDYC boss expressed the belief that such additional funds would enable the NDDC to partner with other relevant organizations in agriculture and also help in completing uncompleted projects executed by the NDDC several years ago by past managements of the Commission.
Prince Ogba recalled that by analysis some years back, the NDDC required about five trillion Naira as against a budget of N1.9trillion to complete numerous uncompleted projects of the Commission, adding that such situation was an impediment to its efforts to meet the increasing challenges to accomplish an integrated development of the peoples of the Niger Delta region.
He, however, applauded the present management of the NDDC led by Samuel Ugbuku for carrying out the completion of projects that were not completed by the commission.
He noted that with the NDDC going into food production and processing of farm produce, in a space of three years, the Niger Delta region would have enough food for the region to feed its over thirty million people and the rest of the country.
The current management of the NDDC has completed and commissioned a considerable number of uncomplete projects across the nine states in the region with its mandate to facilitate the rapid, even, and sustainable development of the Niger Delta into a region that is economically prosperous, socially stable, ecologically regenerative and politically peaceful, to offer a lasting solution to the socio-econimic difficulties of the Niger Delta region.
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