Despite rising borrowing costs, Nigeria remains an active player in the global debt market, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). During the IMF/World Bank annual meetings in Washington DC, IMF Financial Counsellor Tobias Adrian noted that Nigeria and other frontier markets have maintained their presence in the debt market throughout 2024, even as financing costs have surged beyond pre-2021 levels. “Frontier markets, including Nigeria, have been active in the debt market this year. Though access to financing is more expensive, overall issuance levels have remained encouraging,” said Adrian.
At the conference, Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, engaged in strategic discussions with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, highlighting the country’s economic reform agenda under President Bola Tinubu’s administration. Edun is pushing for increased international support and concessional loans to bolster reforms aimed at enhancing economic resilience and improving living standards.
Edun, speaking at the G-24 leaders’ news conference, also stressed the need for affordable financing to protect the vulnerable from the short-term impact of economic adjustments while ensuring long-term sustainability. Meanwhile, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Yemi Cardoso is expected to lead discussions on boosting remittance inflows to strengthen Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves amid ongoing fiscal challenges.
The IMF praised Nigeria’s recent monetary policy measures, including interest rate hikes and exchange rate liberalization, as key steps in stabilizing the economy and curbing inflation, which remains near 30%. However, the IMF has revised its growth forecast for Nigeria, predicting a slowdown in 2024 due to inflationary pressures and persistent economic difficulties.
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