President Bola Tinubu has asked the Senate to approve the implementation of a $7.7bn external borrowing plan to part-finance the 2026 budget deficit.

The request, which translates to about N10.79tn at the budget exchange rate of N1,400 to the dollar, was conveyed in a letter read by the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, during Wednesday’s plenary.

In the letter dated October 26, 2026, Tinubu requested the National Assembly’s approval for the Federal Government to implement new external borrowings provided for in the 2026 Appropriation Act.

The President said the borrowing was part of the N29.2tn approved new borrowing for the 2026 budget, comprising N18.4tn in domestic borrowing and N10.79tn in external borrowing.

He said the external financing was required to part-finance the budget deficit and support the implementation of projects and programmes captured in the 2026 Appropriation Act.

Tinubu said, “I write to request for a resolution of the National Assembly to implement the new external borrowings in the 2026 Appropriation Act in the sum of N10, 790, 366, 835,481, which is the equivalent of $7,707,404,882.49 at the budget exchange rate of USD 1 to 1,400 Naira for the part financing of the budget deficit of 20.23 trillion Naira.”

According to the letter, the government plans to explore different funding options simultaneously, with emphasis on issuing Eurobonds because of the relatively shorter time required to raise funds and the possibility of securing larger amounts at lower costs.

Tinubu said, “The terms and conditions of the Eurobond issuance, being market-related, the final terms and conditions, interest rates and tenors can only be determined at the time of pricing and will be subject to market conditions prevailing at the time.”

He added that the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Debt Management Office would ensure that Nigeria secured the best possible terms and conditions.

Explaining the intended use of the funds, the President said the borrowing would support projects in priority sectors, including defence and security, transportation, agriculture, power, education and health.

He also said the proceeds would help strengthen the country’s external reserves and support the naira.

“The proceeds will increase accretion to external reserves since they will be received by the Central Bank of Nigeria on behalf of the Federal Government of Nigeria, thereby supporting the Naira exchange rate,” he said.

After reading the letter, Akpabio said he believes the latest request cancels the $20.52bn and €1.045bn external borrowing proposal earlier presented to the National Assembly.

The Senate President referred the latest request to the Committee on Local and Foreign Debts for further legislative action.

Recall that Tinubu had last week asked the Senate and the House of Representatives to approve external borrowing facilities totalling $20.52bn and €1.045bn under the Federal Government’s 2026–2027 Supplementary External Borrowing Rolling Plan.

The earlier request was intended to finance projects and programmes in infrastructure, agriculture, healthcare, education, water supply, security and employment generation, among other sectors.