APM Urges Lenders to Block $1.5bn World Bank Credit as Nigeria's Debt Hits ₦166.79tn
Nigeria's public debt reached ₦166.79 trillion by 30 June 2026, the Debt Management Office (DMO) has said, a rise of about ₦7.44 trillion from the ₦159.35 trillion recorded at the end of March. The DMO made the June position public on 25 September.
Against that backdrop, the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has asked the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), China, the United States and other foreign creditors to stop extending new credit to the federal government, arguing that further borrowing by President Bola Tinubu's administration would swell the country's obligations and mortgage the future of Nigerians.
Abubakar Yusuf, the party's National Publicity Secretary, made the call in a statement issued on Tuesday.
According to Yusuf, the APM is disturbed that the government keeps turning to lenders even though its revenues have grown since the petrol subsidy was scrapped.
"The APM strongly condemns the attempt by President Tinubu to further mortgage the future of millions of Nigerians with a fresh $1.5bn credit from the World Bank," he said.
Yusuf also restated the party's appeal to international financial institutions: "The APM, as a party committed to the well-being of Nigerians, restates its call to international financial bodies, including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and other international lenders such as China, the United States, among others, not to give any fresh credit to the Tinubu administration."
The party said it doubts Abuja can keep servicing its mounting debts, and contended that Nigerians have gained too little from money borrowed in the past. It further alleged that loan proceeds have been channelled to private interests, without offering specific proof in the statement.
The APM blamed the administration for the naira's slide as well as for higher taxes and rising prices of electricity, transport, food and healthcare. It called the government "squandermaniac" and said the All Progressives Congress (APC) is inflating its achievements with the 2027 general elections in view.
On the borrowing itself, the party tied the plans to Nigeria's food crisis, quoting the World Food Programme (WFP) as estimating that roughly 35 million Nigerians will face acute food insecurity in 2026. The agency has projected that close to 35 million Nigerians could suffer acute and severe food insecurity during the 2026 lean season, citing conflict, climate shocks, displacement and weakening local food systems.
The North-east carries a heavy share of the burden. According to the WFP, almost 5.8 million people across Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states face severe food insecurity in 2026, while 15,000 people in Borno are expected to experience catastrophic hunger. In July, the agency cautioned that the country's food security situation was deteriorating, with conflict driving hunger in parts of the North to levels not witnessed in nearly ten years.
That WFP number, however, covers people facing acute or severe food insecurity. It does not back the party's separate assertion that over 140 million Nigerians cannot afford daily meals.
The APM argued that the government should not take on fresh obligations so close to the 2027 election, and claimed that Nigerians have already agreed to vote the APC out in 2027, a political claim unsupported by polling or other evidence in its statement.
The party said its presidential candidate, Seyi Makinde, would prioritise transparency, fiscal discipline, productive investment and better use of public resources. It also pledged to revive the productive sector and pursue policies aimed at improving living conditions.
Three facilities in the pipeline
The federal government is talking to the World Bank about three proposed financing facilities worth a total of $1.5 billion, according to World Bank documents. Each of the three is valued at $500 million and they focus on climate resilience, social protection and early childhood development.
The ACReSAL project (Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes) is the most advanced of the three. The World Bank is scheduled to consider an extra $500 million for it on 29 October. Should that go ahead, ACReSAL's financing would grow from $700 million to $1.2 billion, with the money meant to support climate-resilience work, including efforts to improve livelihoods and resilience among vulnerable communities.
The other two facilities, covering social protection and early childhood development, are at earlier stages of preparation and have not been approved.
The difference is important. The APM portrayed the matter as a fresh $1.5 billion credit being sought by the Tinubu administration, whereas project documents show a pipeline of three proposed facilities rather than a single approved disbursement.
World Bank funding to Nigeria has covered economic reforms, social protection, infrastructure, health, education and climate resilience. In 2024, the bank approved a $1.5 billion package for Nigeria under the Nigeria Reforms for Economic Stability and Economic Transformation Development Policy Financing programme, made up of a $750 million International Development Association (IDA) credit and a $750 million International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loan. The proposed facilities would add to Nigeria's existing obligations to the lender.
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