CBN reveals N408.5bn on debt servicing in February

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed that the Federal Government spent 85.37 per cent of its revenue servicing debt in February.

The CBN, in its monthly economic report for February 2023, noted that the Federal Government had a retained revenue of N478.57bn in February.

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The bank also stated that the Federal Government spent N408.5bn on debt servicing in the same month.

The report further showed that the country recorded a fiscal deficit of N513.05bn in February.

The report read, “The estimated overall fiscal deficit of the FGN expanded in February, due to a drop in the retained revenue. At N513.05 billion, the provisional fiscal deficit of the FGN rose by 22.8 per cent relative to the preceding month. However, it was 16.2 per cent below the budget benchmark.”

The International Monetary Fund recently said the Federal Government projected to spend 82 per cent of its revenue on interest payments in 2023.

According to the IMF, external debt (including that of the private sector) will rise to $121.6bn, with external reserves climbing to $37.5bn.