Nigeria owed China $5.67 billion in bilateral external debt at the end of 2025, making the Asian country its largest single government creditor, according to the World Bank’s International Debt Report 2026.
The figure represents approximately 85% of Nigeria’s $6.68 billion bilateral debt to foreign governments, highlighting China’s dominant position among the country’s official bilateral lenders.
The World Bank’s creditor breakdown showed that Nigeria owed France $774 million, while other bilateral creditors accounted for approximately $237 million.
The report, published on November 6, 2026, put Nigeria’s total external debt at $145.02 billion at the end of 2025, representing a 6.6% increase from $135.99 billion recorded in 2024.
The latest figure also represents a substantial increase from the $83.21 billion recorded in 2015, reflecting the expansion of Nigeria’s external borrowing obligations over the past decade.
The World Bank’s breakdown showed that Nigeria’s public and publicly guaranteed (PPG) external debt stood at $62.40 billion (including $5.52 billion in IMF credit and Special Drawing Rights allocations), while private non-guaranteed external debt accounted for $54.48 billion and short-term external debt was valued at $28.14 billion.
Multilateral institutions accounted for the largest share of Nigeria’s public and publicly guaranteed borrowing. Their combined exposure stood at approximately $31.37 billion when IMF credit and SDR allocations are included, while private creditors accounted for $24.35 billion and bilateral lenders $6.68 billion.
The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), its concessional lending arm, was Nigeria’s largest multilateral creditor, with $18.53 billion outstanding.
Despite the increase in external debt, some indicators of Nigeria’s debt position improved during the period.
The country’s external debt-to-exports ratio declined to approximately 212% in 2025 from 221% in 2024, while external debt relative to Gross National Income fell to about 51% from 55%.
However, debt servicing continued to put pressure on the country’s external earnings. The debt service-to-exports ratio increased to approximately 19% from 18%, while debt service relative to Gross National Income rose to about 5%.
The figures indicate that although some debt ratios improved, Nigeria continued to face a substantial repayment burden relative to its export earnings.
China’s position as Nigeria’s largest bilateral creditor comes amid broader concerns about the country’s growing external obligations and the need to balance infrastructure financing with long-term debt sustainability.
