The House of Representatives has approved President Bola Tinubu’s request to borrow $347 million as part of Nigeria’s 2025–2026 borrowing plan.
The loan, according to the President, will help fund two major infrastructure projects, the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and a telecoms expansion initiative targeting rural communities.
Tinubu explained in a letter read on the House floor that $47 million was needed to cover a cost increase on the Lagos-Calabar project, which has now risen from $700 million to $747 million. He said:
“It is necessary to increase the value of the financing to ensure it aligns with the loan size agreed in the finance documents.”
In addition, $300 million will be used for the Nigerian Universal Communications Access Project, which aims to deploy 7,000 telecom towers in hard-to-reach rural areas, closing Nigeria’s digital access gap.
The House Committee on Aids, Loans and Debt Management, chaired by Abubakar Nalaraba, presented the report supporting the loan approval. He assured that the country’s rising debt level is still within acceptable limits:
“Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio of about 50 per cent is within the international threshold of 56 per cent.”
Nalaraba also pointed out that the government has managed to lower the debt service-to-revenue ratio from over 90% to below 70%, with expectations that revenue from the upcoming Nigerian Tax Act 2025 will further strengthen repayment capacity.
