Nigeria’s Government Interest Payments Exceed Revenue in First Half of 2026

The Federal Government of Nigeria spent N7.7tn on interest payments during the first half of 2026, accounting for 124.2 per cent of its total revenue of N6.2tn, per World Bank data.

This represents a N1.5tn shortfall in revenue compared to interest obligations between January and June 2026, as noted by the World Bank.

Interest payments rose by N2.1tn, or 37.5 per cent, from N5.6tn in the same period of 2025, driven by higher domestic borrowing costs.

The World Bank reported that interest payments constituted 3.1 per cent of GDP (N7.7tn) versus 2.5 per cent (N5.6tn) in the prior year, reflecting elevated borrowing costs.

The interest-to-revenue ratio improved from 155.6 per cent in the first half of 2025 to 124.2 per cent in the first half of 2026, a reduction of 31.4 percentage points.

Despite this improvement, interest obligations remained above the government’s total revenue, constraining funding for infrastructure, public services, and other expenditures.