The Federal Government has decried the huge burden of debt servicing, even as the government is still borrowing more.

The government attributed mounting fiscal pressures not to debt sustainability metrics but to steep interest rates imposed on developing countries in the international market.

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Adewale Edun, raised the concerns at the Senate Committee on Appropriation interactive session, accompanied by the Federal Government’s economic team on the proposed ₦51.8 trillion 2026 Appropriation Bill.

Senator Mukhail Abiru had expressed perturbation over Nigeria’s rising debt profile, estimated at about ₦15 trillion.

Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, NRS, Zacch Adedeji, attributed budget funding challenges to unrealistic projections in past fiscal plans.

The engagement, according to Senator Olamilekan Adeola, formed part of ongoing legislative scrutiny of the 2026 budget proposal, as lawmakers pressed the executive on debt management, oil revenue projections, and strategies for improving budget performance.