Nigeria’s Debt Reduction: Reno Omokri’s Claim Fact-Checked

In a recent interview at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to Mexico, Reno Omokri, made a striking claim about the country’s financial standing under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration. Omokri asserted that Nigeria’s total public debt had decreased substantially from $113 billion in June 2023 to $103 billion by April 2026, representing a $10 billion reduction.

The claim came during an induction course for ambassadors and high commissioners designate on April 27, 2026, where Omokri told News Central that critics like former governor Peter Obi were misleading the public by calculating Nigeria’s debt in naira rather than dollars.

“When this administration came into being on May 29, 2023, Nigeria owed $113 billion,” Omokri stated. “Right now, as I speak to you, April 27, 2026, our debt is $103 billion. So, you can see that our debt under President Tinubu has reduced by 10 billion dollars.”

His statement quickly gained traction on social media, accumulating over 90,000 views and sparking heated financial debates among Nigerians.

However, an investigation by The FactCheckHub reveals that Omokri’s claim is false. The analysis relied on official data from Nigeria’s Debt Management Office (DMO), the federal agency responsible for managing and storing information regarding the country’s domestic and international debt obligations.

According to the DMO’s records, Nigeria’s total public debt—calculated as the sum of domestic and external debts of the federal government, 36 states, and the Federal Capital Territory—stood at $113.42 billion as of June 30, 2023, shortly after Tinubu took office. This figure aligns with Omokri’s starting point.

The discrepancy emerges in Omokri’s claim about the current debt figure. The latest DMO report, released on April 13, 2026, shows that Nigeria’s total public debt reached $110.97 billion by the end of December 2025—not the $103 billion claimed by Omokri.

A detailed examination of the debt trajectory reveals that while the debt did temporarily drop to $103.94 billion in September 2025, it subsequently increased to $110.97 billion by December 2025. This means the actual reduction in dollar terms between June 2023 and the latest reported period is just $2.45 billion, significantly less than the $10 billion reduction claimed by Omokri.

The investigation further highlighted that Omokri appears to have selectively used outdated figures from September 2025 to support his narrative, rather than referencing the most current official data available.

Moreover, while Omokri emphasized analyzing the debt in dollar terms to avoid what he described as misleading naira calculations, the domestic currency perspective remains crucial for understanding the economic impact on Nigerians. In naira terms, the debt has actually increased by 82.3 percent—from N87.38 trillion in June 2023 to N159.28 trillion by December 2025—largely due to significant changes in the exchange rate, which moved from N770.38/$1 to N1,474.83/$1 during this period.

The substantial rise in naira-denominated debt reflects the impact of the government’s forex policy shifts, including the unification of foreign exchange windows early in Tinubu’s administration and the continued depreciation of the naira against major currencies.

Financial analysts note that while measuring debt in dollars may provide one perspective on Nigeria’s financial position, the naira valuation more accurately reflects the burden on the federal budget and the economy at large, particularly as debt service payments consume an increasing portion of government revenues.

The DMO’s periodic reports remain the authoritative source for tracking Nigeria’s debt profile, offering a comprehensive view of both domestic and external obligations across all tiers of government.