China open to more loans, investments in Nigeria

The Federal Government has clarified that it is not seeking debt forgiveness from China, despite ongoing discussions about debt relief at international forums.

According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, Beijing is open to extending further loans and making more investments in Nigeria’s economy.

Tuggar made this statement during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme, responding to questions about Nigeria’s debt situation and recent interactions with China.

“No, that is not what we are discussing with China. And when it comes to the issue of debt, look at the debt-to-GDP ratio of Nigeria, we are not even among the critically indebted nations.

“When you talk about the debt of a developing country, Nigeria is not in that sort of precarious situation. As a matter of fact, China is prepared to lend more, China is prepared to invest more in Nigeria in terms of infrastructure development and other things,” Tuggar said.

He emphasised that while Nigeria has pushed for debt relief measures globally, including at the United Nations General Assembly, China remains prepared to strengthen its financial commitments to Nigeria.

At the 79th session of the UNGA in New York, Vice President Kashim Shettima, representing President Bola Tinubu, called on world leaders to prioritise debt forgiveness for Nigeria and other developing countries from creditors and multilateral financial institutions.

Despite these calls, Tuggar noted that debt forgiveness is a gradual process and has not yet been achieved at recent UNGA sessions.

Tuggar said, “Under President Obasanjo, we benefited from debt forgiveness. It’s a process; it’s not just an event, it takes time but you have to be there, you have to be present, and then these things happen, they don’t happen overnight.

“The effect that we felt the last time we had debt forgiveness did not just happen with one UNGA.”

According to the Debt Management Office in its Q1 2024 report, Nigeria’s domestic and external debts stood at N121.67tn ($91.46bn).