President Bola Tinubu has formally approached the National Assembly seeking approval for a series of substantial borrowing initiatives. These include a comprehensive external borrowing plan for 2025-2026, the issuance of domestic bonds to clear outstanding pension liabilities, and additional domestic borrowing to fund critical economic sectors. These requests were detailed in letters read on the floors of both the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The cornerstone of the request is the 2025-2026 external borrowing plan, which aims to secure significant foreign currency financing. Specifically, the plan outlines intentions to borrow USD 21,543,647,912, EUR 2,193,856,324.50, and JPY 15 billion. Additionally, the plan includes a request for a grant of EUR 65 million. President Tinubu emphasized that these funds are earmarked for a wide array of national development projects.

The stated objectives for these external funds are extensive, covering critical sectors such as infrastructure, agriculture, health, education, and water supply. The borrowing is also intended to stimulate growth, enhance security, generate employment, promote skill acquisition, foster entrepreneurship, reduce poverty, and support financial and monetary reforms. According to the President's communications, this external financing is deemed essential to address Nigeria's significant infrastructure deficit and to bridge financial shortfalls, particularly in light of the economic impacts of fuel subsidy removal and what was termed "declining domestic demand." The projects funded are expected to be implemented across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

In addition to foreign loans, President Tinubu is seeking authorization to issue Federal Government bonds in the domestic debt market. This initiative aims to raise ₦757.98 billion (approximately ₦757,983,246,571) specifically to settle long-standing outstanding pension liabilities under the Contributory Pension Scheme. This move is presented as a commitment by the government to fulfill its obligations to retired public sector workers.

A separate domestic borrowing request involves raising $2 billion from the local market. These funds are intended to support investments in critical sectors of the economy, referred to in one communication as supporting "capital grazing funds," aimed at bolstering key areas of national development.

The loan and bond requests have been formally tabled before both chambers of the National Assembly. In the Senate, the requests, read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, have been referred to the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts for detailed legislative scrutiny. This committee is expected to report back with its findings and recommendations, in some cases within two weeks. Similarly, the letters were read in the House of Representatives by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, initiating the legislative review process in the lower chamber.

These new borrowing proposals come at a time when Nigeria's total public debt, as of December 2024 data from the Debt Management Office, stood at approximately N144.7 trillion (around $94.2 billion). This existing debt is composed of roughly 51.4% domestic debt (N74.4 trillion) and 48.6% external debt (N70.3 trillion), highlighting the significant financial commitments the country already manages.