The Federal Government has dismissed reports claiming that President Bola Tinubu’s administration borrowed about ₦80 trillion within three years, describing the figures as misleading.

Speaking during an economic briefing with the Senate Committee on Finance on Monday, Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, explained that the increase in Nigeria’s public debt was largely due to accounting adjustments and the depreciation of the naira, not fresh borrowing.

Lawmakers had questioned reports suggesting that the current administration added nearly ₦80 trillion to the ₦75 trillion debt stock it inherited upon assuming office.

Responding, the minister said comparing the debt figures at the beginning of the administration with the current debt stock without considering exchange rate changes gives a false impression.

He explained that the sharp depreciation of the naira significantly increased the naira value of Nigeria’s existing external debt, adding more than ₦40 trillion to the public debt through currency revaluation alone.

According to him, another ₦33 trillion reflected in the debt stock came from the securitisation of Ways and Means advances approved by the National Assembly, stressing that the exercise did not amount to new borrowing.

The Federal Government maintained that the reported ₦80 trillion increase does not represent fresh loans obtained by the Tinubu administration but is largely the result of accounting and financial adjustments.