ABUJA, Nigeria, Oct. 27, 2026 — President Bola Tinubu has asked Nigeria’s National Assembly to approve a supplementary external borrowing plan worth $20.52 billion and €1.045 billion to finance infrastructure and development projects across the country.
The request, contained in a letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary on Tuesday, seeks legislative approval for the Federal Government’s 2026–2027 supplementary external borrowing plan.
Tinubu said the proposed financing was intended to address Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit and close funding gaps across critical sectors of the economy, including power, transportation, health care, education, agriculture, water supply and security.
The funds are also expected to support employment generation and financial management reforms.
In the letter, the president urged lawmakers to consider the proposal and approve it promptly to facilitate the implementation of the planned projects.
He said the projects had undergone technical and economic evaluations and were selected based on their potential to support socioeconomic development, create jobs, promote skills acquisition and entrepreneurship, reduce poverty and improve food security.
Tinubu argued that the scale of Nigeria’s infrastructure needs required substantial financing beyond the resources currently available to the government.
The proposal places additional external borrowing before lawmakers as the administration continues to pursue financing for infrastructure and other development priorities.
Akpabio said elements of the borrowing plan had featured in earlier government budgetary and borrowing arrangements. He subsequently referred the request to the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts for further examination, with the committees on Appropriations and Finance expected to participate in the review.
The committee is expected to clarify the scope of the proposal and its relationship with previous borrowing approvals before the Senate takes further action.
The request has renewed attention on the Federal Government’s borrowing strategy, the management of public debt and the long-term cost of servicing external obligations.
While the government has cited infrastructure investment and development needs as reasons for seeking additional financing, further scrutiny of the proposal is expected to establish the specific funding arrangements and commitments involved.
The latest request comes as Nigeria approaches the 2027 general election, scheduled for January 16, according to the timetable reported by local media.
The National Assembly’s consideration of the proposal will determine whether the administration secures the legislative approval required to proceed with the supplementary borrowing plan.
Further details on the proposed lenders, interest rates, repayment schedules and the allocation of funds to individual projects were not immediately available in the initial report.
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