BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE

AFTER the euphoria of their electoral victories, one of the major challenges that will confront the President-elect, Major- General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), and 20 or 21 new governors is the level of
debt stock the out-going administrations will leave behind.

According to the Debt Management Office,DMO, the Federal Government has a stock
of $6.445 billion in external debt (N1.29 trillionat the rate of one dollar to N200) and another
N7. 9 trillion domestic debt totalling N9.19 trillion, as of December 31, 2014.This is the equivalent of two years budget.

According to external debt figures released by the DMO,

Lagos State is the most indebted state in the country with a debt $1,169,712,848.65 (N233.94 billion).The state had also borrowed N167.5 billion from the bond market. Thus, Lagos is
owing at least N401.44 billion.
This is one of the issues that Governor-elect, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode will confront when he takes over from Governor Babatunde Fashola, next month.

Among the 29 states where governorship elections were held last Saturday, new persons will take over in 20 states, if Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State is
re-elected after the April 25 supplementary elections otherwise the number of newcomers will be 21.

The other states where fresh
men will take over are Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom,Bauchi, Benue, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Enugu, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Lagos, Niger, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto and Taraba. Most of these states are highly indebted.

Following declining oil prices
in the international market and inability to boost their internally generated revenue, many states, in addition to obtaining loans
and overdraft from banks, had approached the capital market in the last four years to raise funds. The amount of money they borrowed through the issuance
of bonds has tripled over the period, rising to N673 billion
from N298 billion in 2011.
About 12 states have issued
bonds totalling N375 billion, surpassing the total bonds
issued by all states in the country since 1978.

Lagos State tops the list of borrowers from the bond
market, at N167.5 billion.

Rivers recently launched a N100 billion bond. Delta State is
third with N50 billion. Others include Gombe (N30 billion), Ekiti (N25 bn), Niger N21 billion), Bauchi (N15 billion) and Benue (N13bn).

As of last December, Nigeria’s total public debt stock, according to the DMO stood at about $67.73 billion and N11.24 trillion, which is about N1.2 trillion higher than the 2013 figure of N10.04trillion.

A breakdown of the figures showed that external debt, including those of the states, was $9.71 billion and N1.63 trillion.

The Federal Government’s domestic debt was $47.05 billion and N7.9trillion, while those of
the states stood at $10.97 billion and N1.708 trillion.

Most indebted states Using the DMO’s external debt figures without adding domestic debts (see tables).

Lagos tops the chart of 10 most indebted states in the country with $1.17bn or N233.94 billion debt.

It is distantly followed by

Kaduna (N46.88 bn)
Cross River (N28.29bn),
Edo (N24.63 bn),
Ogun (N21.83 bn),
Bauchi (17.51 bn),
Katsina (N15.79 bn),
Osun(N14.81 bn),
Oyo (N14.47 bn)
and Enugu(N13.79)

Least indebted states
Leading the states with little exposure to multilateral and bilateral loans are
Taraba(N4.56 bn),
Borno (N4.61 bn),
Delta (N4.85bn),
Plateau (N6.19 bn),
Yobe (N6.25 bn),
Benue (N6.62 bn),
Abia (N6.76 bn),
Zamfara(N7.11 bn)
and Kogi (N7.16 bn).

However, if domestic debts are added, states like Taraba, Borno and Abia, which have not issued bonds are the least indebted. World Bank Consultant and Abia State Finance Commissioner, Dr Phillip Nto, said Abia State
is reluctant to take bonds like many other states because it would mortgage the future
of Abians.

He said: ‘’Ordinarily when you collect bond, you are mortgaging your future because you pay over a long period of time but our
governor is one that feels that it is not proper to mortgage the future of the state.

Abia State is trying to come out from the mess, the monumental difficulty which it was pushed
into in early 2000, so for the
state to be mortgaged again means that the state will be declared insolvent. It is the reason the governor (Theodore Orji) is not enthusiastic about going to the bond market. But what some other states are achieving with their bond money, Governor

more details visit the source

www.vanguardngr.com/2015/04/huge-debts-await-buhari-in-coming-govs/

This is not good to hear

It depends how u manage d debt,that matters.

don4real:
This is not good to hear

It's not good to hear,but good to know. APCs program i.e the meal per child in school, was probably funded by money borrowed and probably APC may also apply the model from osun states.

Lagos is the nerve centre of APC,with their(lagos) debt profile even though they have the highest IGR(non-oil),APC may use the model in Nigeria.

you wonder what Lagos state have done(compared with what we have seen on ground) with all this debt.

Though Nigeria may be destructively indebted,so far we have infrastructure(sometimes street beautification with flowers and gardens) that is 1/10 of what it should be,we all will shout,Nigeria is working.

I trust APC to use the media to better market whatever they do,no matter how Nigerians are impoverished(anyway,won't they get the campaign funds back or perhaps the donors love Nigeria and wanted to save it from GEJ who want to kill our economy,what patriotism!).

I hope this won't be the case,a better Nigeria where the norm is no more.Its not hate,but i also want change.

E don happen.

Na today?

At least. . . SOUTH-SOUTH don chop im shia!

dey go pay am na

Larger percentage in private pockets.
These people mortgage the future of the citizens to do a small project and people would start hailing them as if they've done it with their personal money

Hopefully when top politicians are being prosecuted a large portion of that fund can be retrieved back

Medley:


It's not good to hear,but good to know. APCs program i.e the meal per child in school, was probably funded by money borrowed and probably APC may also apply the model from osun states.

Lagos is the nerve centre of APC,with their(lagos) debt profile even though they have the highest IGR(non-oil),APC may use the model in Nigeria.

you wonder what Lagos state have done(compared with what we have seen on ground) with all this debt.

Though Nigeria may be destructively indebted,so far we have infrastructure(sometimes street beautification with flowers and gardens) that is 1/10 of what it should be,we all will shout,Nigeria is working.

I trust APC to use the media to better market whatever they do,no matter how Nigerians are impoverished(anyway,won't they get the campaign funds back or perhaps the donors love Nigeria and wanted to save it from GEJ who want to kill our economy,what patriotism!).

I hope this won't be the case,a better Nigeria where the norm is no more.Its not hate,but i also want change.

U r right, we should just hope for the best

Soja come soja go barack remain. Buhari do ur best leave the rest u are nt God

BUHARI HAVE NOT ASSUMED OFFICE AND APC ARE ALREADY COMPLAIN. AM NOT IN FOR ALL THIS COMPLAIN ALL I WANT IS FOR D MAGICIAN CALLED BUHARI TO FULFILL ALL IS CAMPAIGN PROMISES, AND THESE ARE #1-$1, #5,000 STIPEND FOR UNEMPLOYED GRADUATE, 24HRS POWER SUPPLY, GOOD ROADS AND FOR SECURITY I THINK BH ARE HAPPY THAT BUHARI IS D PRESIDENT ELECT ALEAST THEY HAVE REDUCED THEIR ATTACK. APC SHOULD STOP COMPLAING AND GET TO WORK

Baba one chance promised to block all the corruption linkages and use the proceeds to revamp the economy.

If this money will be retrieved from all this thieves in goverment and they mistakenly credit it in my bank account. Na him be na @godwin oh.