The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said Nigeria’s foreign liabilities rose by 42.41 percent from $131.56 billion in 2016 to $187.36 billion as of December 2020.
The nation’s foreign assets grew by 13.67 percent from $89.87 billion in 2016 to $102.15 billion during the period under review.
Foreign assets are the investment securities owned by the Nigerian government, companies, or Nigerians in foreign countries while foreign liabilities are assets owned by foreign governments, corporations and individuals in Nigeria.
This puts Nigeria’s Net International Investment Position (foreign assets less liabilities) at -$85.21 billion as of December 2020.
Therefore, at -$85.21 billion, foreigners owned more assets in Nigerian than the value of foreign assets owned by the Federal Government, State Governments, Nigerian-owned companies and Nigerian individuals.
According to Corporate Finance Institute, a Canadian finance repository, a positive Net International Investment Position (NIIP) makes a country a net creditor while a negative NIIP implies that the country is a net debtor.
CFI also said the NIIP was a measure of a country’s financial condition and its sustainability to take on more financial credit.
