President Bola Tinubu has asked the National Assembly to approve a supplementary external borrowing plan for 2026-2027, seeking $20.52 billion and pound 1.045 billion to finance infrastructure development and other priority sectors.
The request was conveyed in a letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary on Tuesday. The proposed borrowing amounts to $20,517,755,901 and pound 1,045,083,643.
In the letter, Tinubu said the funds would help address Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit and close financing gaps across key sectors, including power, transportation, healthcare, education, agriculture, water supply and security. Other priorities include job creation and financial management reforms.
‘I submit the attached Federal Government 2026-2027 Supplementary External Borrowing Plan for consideration and early approval of the National Assembly to ensure prompt implementation of our projects,’ the President wrote.
Tinubu said the proposed projects had undergone technical and economic assessments to ensure they delivered meaningful benefits, particularly in poverty reduction, skills development, entrepreneurship and national food security.
He argued that the scale of Nigeria’s infrastructure needs and the resources required to tackle them had made external borrowing necessary to bridge the country’s financing shortfall.
‘In light of the need for significant infrastructure investment in the country and the vast financial resources needed to address this gap, it has become essential to pursue prudent external borrowings to close the financing shortfall,’ he said.
Following the presentation of the letter, Akpabio observed that aspects of the borrowing framework had featured in earlier government borrowing plans and budgetary arrangements.
He referred the request to the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, chaired by Senator Haruna Manu, for detailed scrutiny. The committees on Appropriations and Finance are also expected to contribute to the review.
Akpabio said the committee would examine the proposal and clarify its scope, noting that related borrowing plans had previously been considered by the National Assembly.
The request comes amid continuing scrutiny of Nigeria’s rising public debt and the government’s reliance on borrowing to finance infrastructure and other development priorities.