President Bola Tinubu has said Nigeria will spend not less than $11.6 billion on debt servicing in 2026 under the current global financial system.
According to a statement issued by Bayo Onanuga, the president spoke on Tuesday at the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi, Kenya.
Tinubu said nearly half of Nigeria’s projected revenue for 2026 would go into servicing debt, warning that the burden was limiting investment in critical sectors of the economy.
“Every single dollar that leaves our treasury to pay punitive interest rates is a dollar that did not go into our steel sector, our textile mills, our agro-processing, or our digital industries,” the president said.
“It is a dollar that did not train a young Nigerian engineer or provide affordable power for our factories.”
Tinubu Faults Global Financial System
The president said African countries continue to be treated as high-risk borrowers despite reforms and fiscal measures introduced by governments across the continent.
“Our industrial base is being starved of the blood it needs, long-term, affordable finance, while creditors and rating agencies treat African sovereigns as permanent high-risk borrowers, regardless of our fiscal performance,” Tinubu said.
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He argued that the current global financial structure was frustrating Africa’s industrialisation efforts by making access to affordable capital difficult.
“How can an African manufacturer compete with a competitor in Europe, Asia, or North America when the cost of borrowing in our nations is five to ten times higher?” he asked.
“How can we build cross-border industrial value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area when our infrastructure projects face a financing gap deepened by the very institutions meant to bridge it?
“The answer is plain, we cannot. The international financial architecture, as currently constituted, is an instrument of industrial disarmament for Africa.”
Tinubu Highlights Economic Reforms
The president said Nigeria had taken what he described as painful but necessary decisions to stabilise the economy, including the removal of petrol subsidies, unification of exchange rates, banking recapitalisation, and Nigeria’s exit from the Financial Action Task Force grey list.
“These reforms were sovereign choices, not external conditions. They have delivered a declining debt-to-GDP ratio, now projected at 32.3 percent in 2026, stronger external reserves of $45.5 billion, and a return of investor confidence,” he said.
Tinubu added that Nigeria was not seeking charity but a fair financial system that would support Africa’s industrial growth and reduce dependence on raw commodity exports.
“We seek a financial system that intentionally enables Africa to industrialise, process its own minerals, refine its own crude oil, manufacture its own pharmaceuticals, and compete fairly in the global market,” the president added.
Rafiyat Sadiq is a political, justice, and human rights reporter with Pinnacle Daily, known for fearless reporting and impactful storytelling. At Pinnacle Daily, she brings clarity and depth to issues shaping governance, democracy, and the protection of citizens’ rights.