N25tn debt profile: Further borrowing’ll hurt economy, experts warn FG Nigerians Nigeria
Contrary to the stand of the Federal Government that the nation only has revenue challenge and not debt problem, economists and experts have said that the country has a huge debt burden.
He called on the government to discontinue borrowing in order to avoid a situation where a huge chunk of the country’s annual budget was spent on debt servicing. “I don’t know what they meant by saying we have no problem with our debt. We have a very serious problem with debt. We should not even accumulate further debt beyond what we currently owe.”Also speaking, a former Director General, Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr Chijioke Ekechukwu, said the rising debt portended danger for the economy.
“We are facing a situation where oil revenues are going to be declining, your population is growing, the needs are there and you need to be competitive. So, you need investment, and the only way you can get investment is when investors are confident.” He spoke on Thursday in Ibadan, at the First City Monument Bank South-West region media parley tagged; ‘Nigeria in 2019: low growth versus rising risks advised against further borrowing.
He said, “In 2015, our external debt was N12.1tn but before the end of 2018, it rose to N24.3tn. I know it is never a crime to borrow money, but you must know what you are doing with the money you are borrowing. “Currently, revenue is a problem. But we cannot say that debt is not a problem, because that is a greater problem.”He said there was a need for the country to take a look at its revenue before borrowing.Nwokoma said, “You borrow bearing in mind the level of your revenue; so, our revenue level must be able to match our borrowing, which makes both a problem.
Meanwhile, statistics from the Debt Management Office showed that the country’s total debt stood at N24.95tn as of March 31, rising from N19.16tn as of March 31, 2017.
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