The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has rejected calls for the Federal Government to publish details of how it intends to spend funds drawn from its $5 billion financing facility with First Abu Dhabi Bank, saying the transaction has been subjected to unnecessary scrutiny.
Oyedele spoke on Wednesday at a media briefing at the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja, held as part of a presentation titled “Nigeria’s Reform Scorecard: The Benefits and Harms Prevented.” The exercise followed a directive by President Bola Tinubu that the Minister publicly account for the gains, costs and impacts of the administration’s economic reforms since 2023.
“There’s Nothing Special About That Loan”
The government recently drew about $1.5 billion, the first tranche of the $5 billion Total Return Swap facility arranged with First Abu Dhabi Bank, notwithstanding concerns raised by the International Monetary Fund and Fitch Ratings over the transparency and risks associated with such structures.
The facility was approved by the National Assembly on 31 March 2026, with the initial drawdown expected to support the 2026 budget, infrastructure projects and the refinancing of existing debt obligations.
Asked whether details of the transaction would be made public, the Minister said the government publishes information on how it spends public funds, but questioned why this particular facility was drawing special attention.
“We will not publish how we are spending it. We will publish how we spend government money. There’s nothing special about that loan,” he said.
He continued: “Nobody has asked us whether we’re going to publish the money we took from the World Bank, whether we publish the one from Eurobond, whether we publish the one from Sukuk. Why is this one special?”
“What Else Can Be More Public?”
Oyedele dismissed suggestions that the transaction was conducted without due process, noting that it had passed through the legislature.
“The loan was approved not only by FEC, it was taken to the National Assembly, because what some people are doing is they are comparing with other countries where they did it under the table,” he said. “What else can be more public than what you gave to the National Assembly?”
“We’re Accessing It In Phases”
The Minister said the government had assessed the transaction carefully and was drawing the funds in stages to avoid unnecessary cost.
“This Transaction Is Flexible Rates”
“This Transaction Is Flexible Rates”
He explained that the arrangement differs from the country’s traditional fixed-rate borrowing.
“You need to understand the transaction. There’s always the textbook analysis and there’s the real life of what you’re doing. We’re used to raising bonds on fixed interest rate terms. I can tell you our Eurobond, for example, they were raised when the coupon was double digits. Today, our yield is down to around seven, 7.5 per cent,” he said.
He noted that the country cannot benefit from the lower yield on its existing fixed-rate debt.
“This First Abu Dhabi Bank transaction is flexible rates. It means if rates go up, we pay more. If rates come down, we benefit more. There’s nothing that says we must always do one thing. And the all-in rate for this transaction is lower than our existing portfolio,” he said.
He stated the purpose plainly: “The objective is to use it to refinance expensive debt so you can save money.”