Nigeria Not Indebted to IMF to Qualify for Debt Relief – Ahmed

• Nigeria Not Indebted to IMF to Qualify for Debt Relief – Ahmed

Following nationwide criticism of the International Monetary Fund’s decision to exclude Nigeria from the 25 nations recently granted debt-service relief, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, has said the nation is not indebted to the Fund to need a debt-service relief.

According to her, the debt service relief is for the poorest and most vulnerable members of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The Minister, who tweet on Thursday, to clear the air regarding debt relief, said, “It is true Nigeria is not a beneficiary of recent IMF debt relief for 25 countries. As stated in IMF Executive Board statement, the relief ‘provides grants to our poorest and most vulnerable members to cover their IMF debt obligations for an initial phase over the next six months’.

“Since Nigeria is not indebted to the IMF, there is no outstanding debt obligation to be forgiven. Nigeria’s application for new IMF financing is under consideration and receiving attention.”

Ahmed, however, stated that the nation’s new application for financing is the Fund’s Rapid Financing Initiative.

It should be recalled that the minister said the nation has a $3.4 billion contribution with the International Monetary Fund and the government has approached the Fund for the entire pulse.

“Nigeria is entitled to access up to 100 per cent of its quota under the Rapid Financing Initiative. Our current financial position at the IMF is public information on the International Monetary Fund website,” she added.

According to the Debt Management Office (DMO), the nation’s total external debt stood at $27.676 billion. However, Nigeria is not indebted to IMF  as shown in the list below.

Nigeria’s external debt