Lagos State, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Rivers State accounted for more than 43 per cent of the N4.52 trillion domestic debt owed collectively by Nigeria’s 36 states and the FCT as of March 31, 2026.
The figure is contained in the latest state-level domestic debt data released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) for the first quarter of 2026.
According to the report, the three entities had a combined domestic debt of N1.96 trillion, representing approximately 43.27 per cent of the total debt stock.
Lagos recorded the highest domestic debt among the states and the FCT at N1.21 trillion, accounting for about 26.6 per cent of the total. The FCT followed with N389.88 billion, while Rivers State had N362.43 billion.
Other states with significant domestic debt included Delta at N213.85 billion and Ogun at N200.75 billion.
At the other end of the table, Jigawa recorded the lowest domestic debt at N1.60 billion, followed by Ondo with N7.31 billion and Anambra with N9.62 billion.
Other states with debt stocks below N20 billion included Ebonyi at N12.30 billion, Katsina at N12.69 billion and Kebbi at N14.58 billion.
Debt stock rises by N163.25bn
The DMO data showed that the combined domestic debt of the states and the FCT increased by N163.25 billion, or approximately 3.7 per cent, from N4.36 trillion in December 2025 to N4.52 trillion in March 2026.
The FCT recorded the largest increase during the period, with its debt stock more than doubling from N188.86 billion to N389.88 billion.
Edo State also recorded a notable increase, with its domestic debt rising from N91.18 billion to N172.37 billion. Borno’s debt increased from N42.64 billion to N88.44 billion, while Yobe’s rose from N81 billion to N98.59 billion.
However, some of the states with the largest debt stocks recorded reductions during the quarter.
Lagos’ domestic debt declined slightly from N1.22 trillion in December 2025 to N1.21 trillion in March 2026, while Rivers fell from N378.81 billion to N362.43 billion.
Delta State’s debt dropped from N248.83 billion to N213.85 billion, while Ogun’s declined from N227.47 billion to N200.75 billion.
The figures highlight the significant differences in domestic debt exposure among Nigeria’s subnational governments, with a relatively small number of states accounting for a substantial portion of the overall debt stock.
