Lagos, Delta, and Ogun State led the list of states in Nigeria with the highest domestic debt stock as of the end of June 2022, accounting for over 25% of the total domestic debts of the 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital (Abuja).
This is according to data released by the Debt Management Office, on the state on Nigeria’s debt stock as of the second quarter of 2022. The aggregate domestic debt stocks of the entire states in the country rose to N5.28 trillion as of June 2022, representing a N438.44 billion increase when compared to N4.84 trillion recorded as of the previous quarter.
Also, when compared to the corresponding period of the previous year, the states’ domestic debts rose by N1.16 trillion from N4.12 trillion recorded as of June 2021. Meanwhile, Nigeria’s total public debt stock surged to a record high to stand $103.31 billion as of the period under review.
A further breakdown of the data showed that domestic debts accounted for 61% (or $63.25 billion) of total debt, while external debts accounted for 39% of the debt stock. Interestingly, total debt stock increased by $16.74 billion in the last one year.
Delta, Oyo, and Abuja recorded the highest year-on-year increase in terms of percentage growth, while Lagos, Delta, and Ogun State recorded the highest increase in terms of actual value.
Southern regions top list
- The southwestern region of the country topped the list with the highest domestic debt stock with an aggregate debt of N1.53 trillion, largely driven by the likes of Lagos and Ogun State. Meanwhile, the region saw its domestic debt increase by N68.46 billion in the last three months and by N460.32 billion in the last one year.
- The South-south region followed with an aggregate N1.25 trillion in domestic debt as of June 2022, a figure that was driven by the debt numbers of Delta and Rivers State.
- North Central recorded an aggregate domestic debt stock of N718.87 billion, followed by North-east with N663.39 billion. Also, North-west recorded a domestic debt stock of N581.26 billion, while southeastern region recorded the least debt stock at N539.44 billion.
Top states by domestic debt
Below is the breakdown of the top states in the country with the highest domestic stock as of June 2022.
Lagos State – N797.3 billion
Lagos State recorded the highest domestic debt stock as of June 2022, accounting for 15.1% of the total domestic debt owed by the 36 states of the federation including Abuja. Lagos State saw its domestic debt increase marginally by 2.16% on a quarter-on-quarter basis from N780.48 billion recorded as of March 2022 to N797.31 billion in June 2022.
On a year-on-year basis, domestic debts of the country’s economic hub rose by 49.4% from N533.81 billion recorded as of the corresponding period of 2021.
Delta State – N378.88 billion
Delta State, a major oil-producing state in the country recorded a total of N378.88 billion as domestic debt stock as of June 2022, which accounts for 7.2% of the total states’ domestic debt stock to stand as a distant second on the list.
The domestic debt profile of Delta State increased by 131.8% on a quarter-on-quarter basis from N163.48 billion, while based on a year-on-year comparison, domestic debt stock increased by 84% from N205.92 billion recorded as of June last year.
Ogun State – N241.78 billion
Ogun State, a neighbouring state of Lagos, ranks third on the list of states with the highest domestic debt as of June 2022, accounting for 4.6% of the total. Ogun State saw its domestic debt stock rise by 55.4% compared to N155.57 billion recorded as of the corresponding period of 2021.
However, it declined marginally by 0.08% when compared to the previous quarter (N241.98 billion).
Rivers State – N225.51 billion
Rivers State recorded a total domestic debt stock of N225.51 billion as of June 2022, representing 4.3% of the total states’ domestic debts. The debt stock of Rivers State increased by 5.8% on a year-on-year basis from N213.17 billion recorded as of June 2022, however, it remained unchanged in the past three months.
Imo State – N210.39 billion
Imo State ranked fifth on the list with a total domestic debt stock of N210.39 billion as of June 2022, contributing 4% to the total states’ debt profile. The domestic debt stock of Imo State increased by 40.7% on a year-on-year basis from N149.51 billion recorded as of June 2021.
On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the domestic debt stock of Imo State increased by 2.83% from N204.61 billion recorded as of March 2022.
Others include
- Akwa Ibom – N203.95 billion
- Cross River – N176.09 billion
- Oyo – N159.91 billion
- Osun – N150.53 billion
- Bayelsa – N150.43 billion
It shock me to find my state on this list despite the noise some of his aide shout about debt management