Nigeria spent $870.73 million servicing its external debt in the second quarter of 2026, with interest payments making up more than half of the total sum.
This figure represents a decline from the $954.06 million the country expended on external debt service during the first quarter of 2026.
According to the Debt Management Office, the payments made between April and June comprised $339.75 million in principal repayments, $491.73 million in interest and $39.25 million in other charges.
The country had paid $623.22 million in interest payments during the first quarter of 2026.
These figures were contained in the DMO’s report on actual external debt service payments for the quarter, which highlighted the significant contribution of interest costs to Nigeria’s external debt burden.
Multilateral creditors received the largest share of Nigeria’s external debt service during the quarter, with payments to this category totalling $404.22 million.
This amount comprised $238.28 million in principal repayments, $162.39 million in interest and $3.56 million in other charges.
The International Development Association (IDA) received $204.86 million, made up of $142.00 million in principal, $62.76 million in interest and $100,776.60 in other charges.
The African Development Bank received $127.24 million, including $67.77 million in principal and $58.30 million in interest.
The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development received $44.42 million, comprising $10.48 million in principal and $32.02 million in interest.
Other payments in this category included $11.30 million to the African Development Fund, $8.98 million to the International Fund for Agricultural Development and $3.52 million to the African Growing Together Fund.
Multilateral obligations therefore accounted for the largest portion of Nigeria’s total external debt service in the second quarter of 2026.
Commercial creditors received $325.70 million during the quarter, with these payments largely comprising interest and other charges.
Interest payments to commercial creditors accounted for $292.85 million, while other charges amounted to $32.85 million.
No principal repayment was recorded for commercial creditors during the period under review.
Eurobond interest accounted for the largest single commercial debt service payment, at $217.44 million.
Nigeria also paid $36.36 million to Afrexim Bank under a syndication arrangement and $33.40 million to First Abu Dhabi Bank under a separate syndication facility.
A further $22.50 million was paid in other charges associated with a First Abu Dhabi Bank total return swap.
These figures illustrate the relatively high cost of servicing commercial external obligations, particularly debt tied to Eurobonds.
Nigeria paid $140.81 million to bilateral creditors during the quarter, comprising $101.48 million in principal, $36.49 million in interest and $2.84 million in other charges.
Exim Bank of China received the largest bilateral payment, at $70.94 million, including $57.09 million in principal and $13.85 million in interest.
Agence Francaise Development received $45.39 million, comprising $34.87 million in principal, $8.69 million in interest and $1.83 million in other charges.
China Development Bank received $13.04 million in interest and other charges, while KfW received $11.04 million, comprising $9.52 million in principal and $1.52 million in interest.
Interest payments amounted to $491.73 million, representing 56.5 per cent of Nigeria’s total external debt service during the second quarter. Principal repayments accounted for 39.0 per cent, while other charges made up the remaining 4.5 per cent.
Interest payments exceeded principal repayments by approximately $151.98 million, underscoring the weight of financing costs within the country’s external debt obligations.
The second-quarter debt service figures emerged as Nigeria’s total public debt stock reached N166.79 trillion as of June 30, 2026, according to the DMO. External debt accounted for N75.20 trillion of this figure, compared with N91.59 trillion in domestic debt.
