A data review by WikkiTimes has shown that Bauchi state spent N24 billion on public debt charges in 2023.
Of this amount, foreign interest/discount on short term borrowings gulped N5.102 billion while domestic borrowings interest took N19.390 billion.
This development comes also as the state recorded an internally generated revenue of N34 billion for the same year.
This would mean that for every N10 the state made internally in 2023, it spent an equivalent N7 on public debt charges in 2023.
It would also mean that the state spent an equivalent of 15% of its recurrent revenue (FAAC allocations and IGR) on public debt charges. This is as the state made N158 billion in total recurrent revenue in 2023.
Bauchi Third Highest Indebted Northern State Domestically
Bauchi State domestic debt stood at N162 billion as of September 2023. This is more than any other northern state except Plateau and Benue, whose domestic debt stood at N169 billion and N187 billion respectively according to data published by the debt management office.
Between June and September 2023, Bauchi state domestic loan portfolio grew from N147 billion to N169 billion, meaning that it borrowed another N22 billion within the three months.
State spends more on public debt charges than capital, total expenditure for major ministries
Further review shows that what the state spent as public debt charges is more than its actual capital expenditure for the ministry of health and education combined. In 2023, the health ministry capital expenditure stood at N10 billion, while that of the education sector gulped N6 billion.
The total amount spent for the health ministry in 2023 stood at N18 billion, meaning more was spent on public debt charges than total health sector in the state.
The money spent on public debt charges also more than the total capital expenditure of the water resources, agriculture, housing and environment capital expenditures for the fiscal year.
Water resources ministry spent N2 billion on capital expenditure in 2023, agriculture ministry spent N821 million, while housing and environment spent N9 billion on capital expenditure in 2023.
There have been concerns over the debt profile of the country and states in the country, with experts warning that this could harm development in the indebted states and the country as a whole.
