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Nigeria’s Debt Relief Quest: Beijing Offers More Loans and Investments, Despite Rebuff on Forgiveness

The Nigerian government has made it clear that it is not seeking debt forgiveness from China, despite ongoing discussions about debt relief at international forums. According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, Beijing is open to extending further loans and making more investments in Nigeria’s economy.

In an interview on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme, Tuggar clarified that the debt-to-GDP ratio of Nigeria puts the country among the non-critically indebted nations. “When you talk about the debt of a developing country, Nigeria is not in that sort of precarious situation. As a matter of fact, China is prepared to lend more, China is prepared to invest more in Nigeria in terms of infrastructure development and other things,” he said.

While Nigeria has pushed for debt relief measures globally, including at the United Nations General Assembly, Tuggar emphasized that China remains prepared to strengthen its financial commitments to Nigeria. The Vice President, Kashim Shettima, had earlier called on world leaders to prioritize debt forgiveness for Nigeria and other developing countries at the 79th session of the UNGA in New York.

However, Tuggar noted that debt forgiveness is a gradual process and has not yet been achieved at recent UNGA sessions. “Under President Obasanjo, we benefited from debt forgiveness. It’s a process; it’s not just an event, it takes time but you have to be there, you have to be present, and then these things happen, they don’t happen overnight. The effect that we felt the last time we had debt forgiveness did not just happen with one UNGA,” he said.

According to the Debt Management Office’s Q1 2024 report, Nigeria’s domestic and external debts stood at N121.67tn ($91.46bn). Despite this, Tuggar remains optimistic about Nigeria’s economic prospects, highlighting China’s willingness to extend further loans and make investments in the country’s infrastructure development.