Post by Stephen Onuh Uwodi (@Enefuojo)

BORROWING WITHOUT VISIBLE DEVELOPMENT: HOW MUCH MORE DEBT CAN NIGERIANS CARRY?

The latest revelation that the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration has secured a $5 billion financing arrangement from the United Arab Emirates' First Abu Dhabi Bank has once again reignited concerns over Nigeria's growing debt burden and the government's apparent dependence on borrowing to fund national expenditure.

What makes this arrangement particularly controversial is not only its size but also its structure. Rather than a conventional loan, it is reportedly designed as a Total Return Swap (TRS) derivatives agreement, with Nigeria already drawing an initial $1.5 billion. Even more concerning is the reported requirement that Nigeria pledge naira-denominated government bonds worth approximately 133.3% of the loan value as collateral.

For millions of Nigerians, the fundamental question remains simple: what tangible development justifies this endless borrowing?

Successive loan announcements have become routine, yet ordinary citizens continue to endure worsening economic hardship. Roads remain in poor condition across many parts of the country. Public hospitals struggle with inadequate funding and equipment. Educational institutions continue to face serious infrastructure deficits. Electricity remains unreliable, while insecurity persists across several regions. If borrowing is genuinely intended to stimulate development, Nigerians are entitled to ask where the visible results are.

Borrowing, by itself, is not inherently bad. Every responsible government may borrow for productive investments that generate economic growth, improve infrastructure, create jobs, and enhance national productivity. The problem arises when debt accumulates faster than measurable development, leaving future generations responsible for repayment without corresponding public benefits.

The reported concerns raised by the International Monetary Fund regarding the complexity and opacity of derivative-based financing deserve serious attention. Financial arrangements that obscure the true extent of public liabilities or expose the country to additional financial risks require maximum transparency and rigorous public scrutiny. Nigerians deserve to understand the full terms, risks, repayment obligations, and long-term implications of every major borrowing decision undertaken in their name.

At a time when citizens are making enormous sacrifices through subsidy removal, increased taxation, inflation, and a rising cost of living, government must demonstrate equal commitment to fiscal discipline. It is difficult to justify asking Nigerians to tighten their belts while the nation continues to accumulate significant new debt without clearly identifiable projects that transform people's daily lives.

Transparency cannot be optional. Every borrowed dollar should be traceable to projects with measurable outcomes. Citizens should know how much is borrowed, where the funds are allocated, the implementation timeline, and the expected economic returns. Public accountability is not an obstacle to governance—it is its foundation.

Nigeria cannot continue down a path where debt becomes the default solution to every fiscal challenge while development remains largely invisible to the average citizen. Sustainable economic growth depends on expanding domestic productivity, strengthening non-oil revenues, reducing waste, combating corruption, encouraging private investment, and ensuring prudent management of public resources—not on an endless cycle of increasingly sophisticated borrowing arrangements.

History has shown that countries do not prosper merely because they borrow; they prosper because borrowed funds are invested wisely, managed transparently, and converted into productive assets that improve the lives of their people. That is the standard by which every administration should be judged.

Nigerians deserve more than announcements of new loans. They deserve evidence that every borrowed naira and every borrowed dollar are translating into better infrastructure, stronger institutions, expanded opportunities, and improved living standards. Until those results become visible, public concern over the nation's growing debt burden will remain both understandable and justified.

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