Akwa Ibom Reduces Domestic Debt by N116 Billion Under Eno

Akwa Ibom State has cut its domestic debt by N116 billion since Governor Umo Eno took over in May 2023. This drop moved the state from being the seventh most indebted in Nigeria to the 15th as of March 2026.

Governor Eno started his term on 29 May 2023, when the state’s domestic debt was N199.58 billion as of 30 June 2023, according to figures from the Debt Management Office in Abuja.

By March 2026, the debt had reduced to N83.63 billion. This is a drop of N115.95 billion, which is about 58 percent from the June 2023 level.

Mr Eno's administration has shown consistent efforts in reducing the debt.

The state’s domestic debt fell from N193.45 billion in September 2023 to N190.48 billion in December 2023. It continued to drop to N142.93 billion in March 2024 and then to N132.87 billion by June 2024.

The downward trend continued with the debt falling to N126 billion in September 2024, N122.19 billion in December 2024, N118.21 billion in March 2025, and N105.82 billion in June 2025.

By September 2025, it was N95.51 billion before it went down to N84.85 billion in December 2025 and finally N83.63 billion three months later.

This reduction has changed Akwa Ibom’s standing in Nigeria regarding domestic debt.

As of June 2023, the state was the seventh most indebted in Nigeria. By March 2026, it had improved to the 15th position.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Akwa Ibom was the fourth most indebted state in Nigeria in 2017.

Debt Servicing

The cut in the state’s domestic debt has come alongside high spending on debt servicing under Mr Eno.

Akwa Ibom spent N11.64 billion on debt servicing from July to September 2023. The state spent another N12.18 billion on debt charges in the last quarter of 2023.

The state’s financial reports show that debt servicing took up N34.4 billion in 2024. In 2025, N22.33 billion was spent on debt servicing, which is N12.07 billion less than in 2024.

However, the state has not released a detailed budget report for January to June 2026. This limits the ability to assess its debt servicing spending for the first half of the year.

Interest payments on bank loans have also gone down under Mr Eno.

The state paid N9.49 billion in interest on bank loans in 2024. This fell to N6.70 billion in 2025.

This is different from the previous administration, where interest payments were much higher.

A review of Akwa Ibom’s financial records from 2015 to 2022 showed that the state paid N104.66 billion in interest to banks. The lowest annual interest payment recorded under former Governor Udom Emmanuel was N10 billion in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The records also show that many of the loans taken during that time were from Zenith Bank, where Mr Emmanuel worked before becoming governor.

Revenue and Borrowing

The debt reduction happened when Akwa Ibom saw significant revenue inflows.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the state received N2.934 trillion in revenue during Mr Eno’s first 38 months in office.

Despite Mr Eno's claims that his administration has not taken loans, an official document shows N1.2 billion as loans or borrowing receipts in the third quarter of 2023. This amount was listed under “Direct Credit Substitute/Discounting Facility.”

It is unclear if the N1.2 billion was new borrowing or part of an existing credit arrangement. The state government has not given enough details about this transaction.

Liabilities Remain

The drop in domestic debt does not mean that Akwa Ibom’s total financial obligations have fallen to N83.63 billion.

The state’s financial statements show that its total liabilities were N135.3 billion as of 31 December 2025. This included N79.59 billion in external loans, N50.61 billion in federal government bonds, and N5.09 billion in internal loans.

This figure does not include contractors’ liabilities and accruals, which were N32.69 billion.

These different figures show the difference between the state’s domestic debt and its overall financial obligations.

While the domestic debt is down since Mr Eno took office, the state still has obligations from loans, bonds, and unpaid commitments. The reduction in domestic debt is still a significant change from the debt situation when the Eno administration started in 2023, especially with the state’s growing revenues and ongoing spending on debt servicing.