The Senator representing Ondo South, Jimoh Ibrahim, has said Nigeria’s absence from the list of the world’s most indebted countries reflects disciplined fiscal coordination under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Ibrahim, who is also an ambassador-designate, made the assertion in a statement shared on Wednesday, amid renewed public debate over Nigeria’s debt profile and borrowing pattern.
His comments follow fresh global debt data released in the fourth quarter of 2025 by the Institute of International Finance through its Global Debt Monitor, later analysed by Visual Capitalist. The report shows several advanced economies carrying total debt burdens exceeding 300 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).
According to the data, Hong Kong tops the ranking at 380 per cent of GDP, followed by Japan (372 per cent), Singapore (347 per cent), France (326 per cent), and Canada (315 per cent), reflecting combined government, corporate and household debt.
While some African countries — including Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia — are experiencing rising debt levels, Nigeria does not feature among the most indebted nations globally in terms of total debt-to-GDP ratio. It is neither in the global top five nor among Africa’s top 10 most indebted economies by that metric.
Reacting to the figures, Ibrahim said critics who predicted unsustainable borrowing under the Tinubu administration had been mistaken.
“Those who expected reckless borrowing have been proven wrong. Nigeria is not on the list of the world’s most indebted countries. This reflects deliberate fiscal coordination and structured economic reforms,” he said.
The senator argued that reform-driven measures such as fuel subsidy removal and exchange rate unification were introduced to stabilise public finances and reduce long-term fiscal vulnerabilities. He maintained that although Nigeria continues to access credit facilities for infrastructure and development projects, such borrowing is being undertaken within manageable thresholds and aligned with revenue reforms.
He described the trend as evidence that what supporters call “Bolaeconometrics” — referring to the administration’s economic recalibration — is beginning to yield measurable outcomes.
However, Ibrahim cautioned that Nigeria’s position outside the global high-debt bracket does not eliminate fiscal risks. He stressed that debt sustainability remains closely tied to revenue generation and debt-servicing capacity, noting that boosting non-oil revenues, expanding exports and improving public sector efficiency will be critical to maintaining stability.
Despite ongoing domestic debate over borrowing strategy, he expressed confidence that structural reforms would strengthen Nigeria’s macroeconomic fundamentals in the medium term.
