President seeks NASS approval for $2.3bn external borrowing, $500m sovereign sukuk to refinance eurobonds, fund 2025 budget

By Haruna Salami, Christiana Ekpa and Musa Baba Adamu

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has written to the House of Representatives seeking the National Assembly’s approval to implement new external borrowing, refinance maturing Eurobonds, and issue a debut $500 million Sovereign Sukuk in the international capital market as part of the 2025 Appropriation Act.
The letter, addressed to Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and read during plenary, requests a resolution of the National Assembly in line with Sections 21(1) and 27(1) of the Debt Management Office (DMO) Establishment Act, 2003.
According to the President, the 2025 Appropriation Act provides for $9.27 billion in new borrowings to finance the budget deficit, out of which $1.23 billion (N1.84 trillion) is earmarked as new external borrowing. The proposal also includes the refinancing of a maturing Eurobond worth $1.118 billion, originally issued in 2018 and due on November 21, 2025.
Tinubu requested the lawmakers to authorise the Federal Government to raise a total of $2.347 billion from the international capital market through any of the following options: issuance of Eurobonds, bridge financing, loan syndication, or direct borrowing from international financial institutions.
In addition, the President sought approval to issue a stand-alone Sovereign Sukuk of up to $500 million, either with or without credit enhancement from the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credits (ICIEC), a member of the Islamic Development Bank Group.
Tinubu explained that the Sukuk issuance aims to diversify Nigeria’s investor base, open new funding sources, and support the development of critical infrastructure projects.
Since 2017, the DMO has raised over N1.39 trillion through domestic Sukuk issuances for major road projects across the country.
He noted that if the ICIEC credit enhancement is adopted, 25% of the proceeds will be used to repay costlier debt obligations, while the remainder will fund key infrastructure projects.
“The Federal Ministry of Finance and the Debt Management Office will work with transaction advisers to ensure the most favourable terms and conditions for the proposed borrowings,” the President assured.