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Tag: DMO

  • BREAKING: Nigeria’s public debt stock hits N31 trillion in 3 months

    BREAKING: Nigeria’s public debt stock hits N31 trillion in 3 months

    The total public debt stock of Nigeria has risen by 8.3% to N31.009 trillion or $85.897 billion as at June 30, 2020 from N28.628 trillion in March 2020.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the Debt Management Office (DMO) made this known in a statement it published on Wednesday.

    According to the DMO, the figure comprised the total debt stock of the federal government, the 36 State Governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    It ascribed the rise to the USD3.36 Billion Budget Support Loan from the International Monetary Fund, New Domestic Borrowing to finance the Revised 2020 Appropriation Act including the issuance of the N162.557 Billion Sukuk, and Promissory Notes issued to settle Claims of Exporters.

    It also stated that the figure could rise further when the balance of the new borrowing is raised for the implementation of the current budget.

    The statement reads, “The Debt Management Office (DMO) has released information on the Public Debt Stock as at June 30, 2020.

    “The data shows that in Naira Terms, the Total Public Debt Stock which comprises the Debt Stock of the Federal Government, the 36 State Governments and the Federal Capital Territory stood at N31.009 Trillion or USD85.897 Billion.

    “The corresponding figures for March 31, 2020 were N28.628 Trillion or USD79.303 Billion.

    “The increase in the Debt Stock by N2.381 Trillion or USD6.593 Billion was accounted for by the USD3.36 Billion Budget Support Loan from the International Monetary Fund, New Domestic Borrowing to finance the Revised 2020 Appropriation Act including the issuance of the N162.557 Billion Sukuk, and Promissory Notes issued to settle Claims of Exporters.

    “The DMO expects the Public Debt Stock to grow as the balance of the New Domestic Borrowing is raised and expected disbursements are made by the World Bank, African Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank which were arranged to finance the 2020 Budget.

    “It will be recalled that the 2020 Appropriation Act had to be revised in the face of the adverse and severe impact of COVID-19 on Government’s Revenues and increased expenditure needs on health and economic stimulus amongst others.

    “Additional Promissory Notes are expected to be issued in the course of the year, this, and new borrowings by State Governments are also expected to increase the Public Debt Stock”.

  • DMO vows to sack any staff who leaks official document

    DMO vows to sack any staff who leaks official document

    The Debt Management Office (DMO) has vowed to deal with any of its staff responsible for leaking official documents.

    According to a statement issued Saturday evening, the DMO said it “will brief relevant security agencies in the country to thoroughly investigate the sources of the documents”.

    The reason for involving security agencies, the DMO said, is “with a view to bringing the perpetrators to book in line with Public Service Rules No. 030401 and 030402, which prescribes dismissal for unauthorised disclosure of official information as a serious act of misconduct”.

    A national newspaper had published a story titled “Alleged N1.08bn corruption scandal hits DMO”.

    Reacting to the story, the DMO said “the sponsors of the story are disgruntled elements who have not only breached the Civil Service Rules but have also contravened laid down procedures for dealing with official matters”.

    It went on to state that “these officials have resorted to illegally leaking official documents due to their recent redeployment; have colluded with other disgruntled persons who have failed in their attempts to control the running of the affairs of the DMO, which has blocked their ability to pilfer public funds”.

    The DMO added that “the story referred to documents that, on their own, are incomplete and do not reflect the whole story or the purpose of any transaction”.

    DMO denied claims that events and travels by officials of the DMO either did not take place or did not hold as “false and an attempt to discredit the impeccable records of the organisation. These speak to their desperation to give the institution a bad name”.

    The Nation’s debt managers described itself as “an accountable, transparent and responsible organisation that works in accordance with laid down civil service procedures”.

    It noted that “it is highly regarded by multilateral agencies and financial institutions as a reputable government agency”.

  • Nigeria’s budget deficit hits N4.5 trillion – DMO

    Nigeria’s budget deficit has risen from N1.847 trillion to N4.563 trillion, it was learnt on Monday.

    The deficit figure captured in the original 2020 budget before its downward review was N1.847 trillion. It has gone up N4.563 trillion in the revised appropriation now awaiting National Assembly consideration and approval.

    The Director-General of the Debt Management Office (DMO), Ms. Patience Oniha, dropped the hint during her presentation before the Senate Committee on Foreign and Local Debt considering President Muhammadu Buhari’s $5.513 billion external loan request.

    Ms. Oniha said that the revised 2020 budget proposal is N10.509 trillion with a deficit of N4.563 trillion.

    She said that the deficit would be financed through domestic borrowing of N2.188 trillion and external borrowing of N1.984 trillion making a total of N4.173.560 trillion.

    She noted that the amount projected in this year’s appropriation was N1.594.986 trillion.

    She said the increase in the New Borrowing for 2020 is due to the increase in the Deficit in the Budget from N2.18 trillion to N4.58 trillion.

    Oniha explained: “The revision of the 2020 Budget became necessary due to the effects of COVID-19 on Nigeria’s Revenues and the need for new (previously unbudgeted) spending on health to meet the health challenges occasioned by COVID-19.

    “The subsisting 2020 Appropriation Act had a total expenditure of N10.594 trillion and a deficit of N2.175 trillion to be part financed through New Domestic Borrowing of N744.98 billion and new external borrowing of N850 billion.

    “The N850 billion new external borrowing which was to be raised through Eurobonds has been converted, with the approval of the National Assembly, to domestic borrowing due to lack of access to the International Capital Market at this time. Thus, the Total New Borrowing which is all domestic is N1.594 trillion.

    “The proposed new domestic borrowing of N2,188.83 trillion will be raised from the domestic market through the issuance of Federal Government of Nigeria Bonds (FGN Bonds), FGN Savings Bonds, Sukuk, Nigerian Treasury Bills and possibly, a Green Bond.

    “As at May 29, 2020, a total of N1.319.99 trillion had been raised. There is also an on-going Offer for Sukuk of N150 billion.”

    She said that the DMO expected to raise the balance of N868.89 billion which is N2.188 billion less the N1.319 billion, in the course of 2020.

  • Nigeria’s Debt Rises to N27.4trn

    Latest figures released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) showed that adjusted to periodical rates, Nigeria’s total debt stood at N27.4 trillion as at December 2019.

    The latest debt statistics, which were released by the debt office on Wednesday, indicated a 5 percent increase compared to September 2019 figures, which put Nigeria’s total debt profile at N26.2 trillion.

    The DMO explained that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) official exchange rate of N326 per dollar as at December 31, 2019 was used in converting the domestic debts to dollars.

    This means that total debt owed in dollars declined to $84.1 billion in December 2019 from $85.4 billion in September, where a N307/$1 rate was used by the debt office as against a N326/$1 used for the latest data.

    In the instance that the N307/$1 exchange rate had been used in December, the total debt portfolio would have declined to N25.8 trillion in December from N26.2 trillion in September instead of rising to N27.4 trillion recorded at N326/$1.

    The N27.4 trillion included the total external and domestic debt portfolios of the federal government and the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    According to the DMO data, a breakdown of the debt showed that domestic debt took the lion’s share of 67.1 percent amounting to N18.3 trillion of the total debt.

    A further analysis showed that Federal Government’s share of the domestic debt portfolio totalled N14.2 trillion (52.1 percent), while in total, all the states of the Federation inclusive of the FCT owe N4.1 trillion (14.9 percent).

    The country’s total external debt was 9.02 trillion, which makes up 32.9 percent of the total debt portfolio.

    Out of the total external debt sum, the Federal Government owe N7.5 trillion, which amounted to 27.5 percent, while the states and the FCT owe N1.4 trillion or 5.4 percent of the total debt portfolio.

  • Nigeria public debt stands at N26.2 trillion – DMO

    The Debt Management Office (DMO) says the total public debt as at September 2019 stood at N26.215 trillion.

    The Director-General of DMO, Ms Patience Oniha, made this known during a presentation of Public Debt Data as at September 30, 2019 in Abuja on Friday.

    Oniha explained that the debt comprised the Federal Government and 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory’s debts within the period.

    She said that the comparative figure for June 2019 was N25.701 trillion which implied that in the quarter July to September 2019, the total public debt grew by 2.0 per cent.

    She said that the total public debt as at September 2019 included promissory notes in the tune of N821.651 billion, which she said, were issued to settle the Federal Government’s arrears to oil marketing companies and state governments.

    The director general said that the 2019 Appropriation Act provided for a total new borrowing of N1.605 trillion split equally between domestic and external, adding that only the domestic component of N802.82 billion was raised due to the late passage of 2019 budget.

    “Among the highlight of the DMO’s achievements for 2019 was the issuance of a 30-year bond for the first time.

    “The introduction of 30-year bond was to meet the investment needs of long-term investors such as insurance companies and support the development of domestic financial markets in areas such as mortgages” she said.

    According to her, from the Federal Government’s perspective, the 30-year bond also contributed to reducing the refinancing risks of the public debt stock.

    Oniha stated that the borrowing was to finance specific projects and activities of the government as well as to finance deficit budget.

    She further explained that due process, which involved the executive and legislature, was followed.

    The DMO, however, expressed regret that the discussion around the debt was politically motivated.

  • Nigeria’s Debt to GDP Ratio Drops to 18.99% – DMO

    The Debt Management Office (DMO) has disclosed that the debt stock to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Nigeria reduced to 18.99 percent as at June 30, 2019 from 19.09 percent as at December 31, 2018.

    The agency made this disclosure while rolling out the Medium–Term External Borrowing Plan of the federal government, which is meant to stimulating economic growth, diversify the economy and bring about investments in human capital.

    In the plan, the debt office emphasised that the present level of Nigeria’s debt to GDP ratio was very low when compared with many advanced nations like the United States of America (USA).

    However, it stressed that where the problem lies for the Africa’s largest economy is its debt service to revenue ratio, which the DMO said was high at 57 percent in 2017 and 51 percent in 2018.

    This was attributed to the increase in the debt stock and relatively high domestic interest rates, noting that it was for this reason government has decided to borrow externally through the $30 billion loan is seeks approval for from the National Assembly.

    “Nigeria has a ceiling of 25 percent on the total public debt stock to GDP, which it has operated within,” the debt office said in the plan viewed by Business Post, adding that the debt service/revenue ratio “provides strong justification for the current drive to increase oil and non-oil revenues significantly.”

    According to the DMO, “The United States of America, United Kingdom and Canada had debt/ GDP ratios of 105 percent, 85 percent and 90 percent in 2017 which were much higher than that of Nigeria, but because they generate adequate revenues, their debt service/revenue for the same year were 12.5 percent, 7.5 percent and 7.5 percent respectively.

    “The case was also similar for Brazil, South Africa, Kenya and Mexico who had higher Debt/GDP than Nigeria (74 percent, 53 percent, 57 percent and 46 percent respectively), but had lower debt service/revenue of 32.20 percent, 11.4 percent, 13.2 percent and 13.6 percent respectively.”

    “This is clear evidence that Nigeria’s revenues are low. This is further demonstrated by Nigeria’s tax to GDP ratio of only 6 percent in 2018 compared to: Kenya-15.7 percent, Morroco-21.8 percent, Cameroon-12.2 percent and South Africa-27.5 percent, all for 2017. These, attest to the fact that Nigeria has a Revenue challenge rather than a debt problem,” the DMO added.

    The debt office threw its weight behind the borrowing plan, saying it would be used to develop infrastructure in the country like roads, railways, waterways and power, which it said “will help to unleash the potentials of the Nigerian economy.”

    “Other loans such as those for the educational sector will contribute to the development of Nigeria’s human capital, while loans for agriculture will be used to diversify the economy.

    There will also be funding for development finance institutions to enhance access to finance for micro, small and medium scale enterprises,” the debt office further said.

  • Finance Minister counters DMO, says Nigeria’s debt more than N25.7tn

    Finance Minister counters DMO, says Nigeria’s debt more than N25.7tn

    The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, on Thursday said there are debts owed by states and government enterprises that have not been captured in the N25.7 trillion recently declared as total national debt.

    Ahmed made this known during a panel discussion on Debt Transparency at the ongoing World Bank/IMF Annual Meetings in Washington, United States.

    This revelation is coming two days after the Debt Management Office (DMO) published a summary of the nation’s debt as at June 30.

    The minister disclosed plans by the government to produce a more comprehensive debt database with emphasis on providing detailed breakdown of projects related to borrowings.

    “Going forward, we want to scan the environment and have a good database of all the debts that government owes, whether at the sovereign or subnational level.

    “Also, we are trying to capture debts of the state-owned enterprises, and debts we owe local creditors.

    “We want to be able to show more clearly debts that are related to specific projects like debts that we owe to countries like China.

    “Right now, they are reported as part of the public debt but there is no detailed drill down to show the projects tied to them,” she said.

    Ahmed said the move was partly in response to increasing demand from the civil society and the Nigerian public for more transparency in the system.

    She, however, enumerated measures currently in place to ensure transparency in government’s borrowing and debt management.

    The minister explained that all government borrowings were subject to legislative approval conducted in a transparent manner.

    “Nigeria also publishes quarterly data (sovereign and sub-national) as well as the composition of external and domestic debt.

    “In addition, it publishes its Debt Management Strategy, Debt Sustainability Analysis and National Debt Management Framework, and all these are available at the DMO website,” she said.

    She highlighted the benefits of transparency in the system to include helping local and foreign investors, and multilateral and bilateral creditors with their investment and lending decisions.

    The Federal Government, according to the minister, is also undertaking a major programme to assist states with grants and technical assistance to strengthen their fiscal transparency, accountability and sustainability.

    She said the government was embarking on the programme with the support of a 750-million-dollar World Bank financing using the bank’s Programme-for-Results instrument.

    According to her, the initiative will also help benefitting states in debt reporting, domestic expenditure arrears management, and debt sustainability analyses.

    She, however, noted that the support would be given based on the performance of beneficiaries in fiscal transparency and debt management practices

  • Nigeria’s debt hits N25.7trn – DMO

    Nigeria’s debt hits N25.7trn – DMO

    Nigeria’s total public debt increased by to N25.7 trillion as at the end of June 2019 from N22.38 trillion as of June 2018, the Debt Management Office (DMO) said yesterday.

    This means that the country’s debt increased by N3.32 trillion in one year.

    The debt stock, the DMO said, is made up of N8.32 trillion ($27.16bn) external debt and N17.38 trillion borrowed domestically.

    According to latest data posted on the DMO website, the N25.7 trillion debt comprise N20.42 trillion owed by the Federal Government owed as of June 30, 2019, while the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory had a total debt portfolio of N5.28 trillion.

    It would be recalled that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in January this year warned Nigeria and other highly indebted countries against “a legacy of excessive debt”.

    Also during its meeting last month, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) noted that the rising public debt was one of the factors hindering the nation’s growth prospects.

    However, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, said in August this year that the country did not have a debt problem, but faced the challenge of generating sufficient revenue.

    She said: “There is a lot of insensitivity around the level of our debt. I want to restate that our debt is not too high — what we have is a revenue problem. Our debt is still very much within a reasonable fiscal limit. In fact, among our comparative countries, we are the least in terms of borrowing.”

  • September bond auction raises N146.6 bn for FG – DMO

    The Debt Management Office (DMO) says it raised N146.6 billion for the N150 billion offered for three instruments in the September bond auction.

    DMO in a statement said the auction took place on Wednesday in Abuja.

    The office said that it received N207.5 billion in subscriptions for the three instruments of five, 10 and 30-year tenors that were offered.

    It, however, said that the N146.6 billion raised at the auction was through both competitive and non-competitive bids.

    “The amount allotted to competitive bidders for the three instruments was N100 billion, while the sum of N46.6 billion was allotted to non-competitive bidders.”

    The DMO added that allotments were made to successful bidders at 14.39 per cent for the five-year, 14.43 per cent for the 10-year and 14.64 per cent for the 30-year bonds.

    News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nigeria issues sovereign bonds monthly to support the local bond market, create a benchmark for corporate issuance and fund its budget deficit.

  • Nigeria’s total debt stock rise to N24.9 tn in Q1, 2019

    Nigeria’s total public debt rose to N24.947 trillion as at March 31, from N24.387 trillion as at Dec. 31, 2018, growing marginally by 2.30 per cent, the Debt Management Office (DMO) said.
    A statement issued by the office on Wednesday in Abuja, said that the debt stock comprises of domestic and external debts of the Federal Government, the 36 States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
    It added that the debt which rose by N560 billion was accounted for largely by domestic debt which grew by N458.36 billion, while external debt also increased by N101.64 billion during the same period.
    “In relation to the Debt Management Strategy, the ratio of domestic to external debt stood at 68.49 per cent to 31.51 per cent at the end of March.
    “The total public debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio was 19.03 per cent which is within the 25 per cent debt limit imposed by the government.”
    The debt portfolio which was obtained from the DMO website showed that the Federal Government presently owes N13.1 trillion domestically, while the states and the FCT owe N3.97 trillion.
    However, the external debt of the Federal Government, States and the FCT stood at N7.8 trillion.

    Nigeria’s Total Public Debt Portfolio as at Q1, 2019

    According to the states’ debt profile data released by DMO, Lagos recorded the highest domestic debt of N542.2 billion, followed by Rivers with N225.5 billion, Delta N223.4 billion and Akwa Ibom with N199.7 billion.
    On the lowest rung are Yobe with N26.9 billion, Anambra N33.4 billion, Sokoto N36.5 billion, Jigawa N38.2 billion and Niger with N43.4 billion.
    The data showed that Anambra, Borno, Ebonyi, Ekiti and Lagos profiles as at Dec. 31, 2018, indicated that they had not incurred any domestic debt in 2019.
    Meanwhile, that of Rivers was at Sept. 30, 2018.