Kaduna leads as Northwestern States spend N40.9 billion on debt servicing in three months
By Aminu Abubakar
Kaduna State recorded the highest debt servicing expenditure among states in Nigeria’s Northwest geopolitical zone in the first three months of 2026, according to figures detailing the amount spent by state governments on meeting debt obligations during the period.
The data shows that Kaduna spent N21.5 billion on debt servicing, placing it ahead of the six other states in the region.
Katsina State recorded the second-highest expenditure, spending N7.4 billion on debt servicing, while Kano State followed with N5.2 billion.
Sokoto State spent N4.3 billion, while Zamfara State recorded N1.5 billion in debt servicing expenditure.
Jigawa State reported spending N0.858 million, while Kebbi State recorded N0.195 million.
The figures place Kaduna at the top of the regional ranking, with its debt servicing expenditure exceeding the combined figures recorded by several other states in the zone.
A breakdown of the data shows the following expenditures: Kaduna, N21.5 billion; Katsina, N7.4 billion; Kano, N5.2 billion; Sokoto, N4.3 billion; Zamfara, N1.5 billion; Jigawa, N0.858 billion; and Kebbi, N0.195 billion. In total, the states spent N40.9 billion on debt servicing, with January and March, 2026, representing the first quarter of the fiscal year.
Debt servicing refers to payments made by governments toward the repayment of borrowed funds, including obligations arising from loans and other debt instruments.
Among the seven states, Kaduna’s N21.5 billion expenditure represents the largest amount allocated to debt servicing in 2025.
The state’s expenditure was N14.1 billion higher than that of Katsina, which occupied the second position on the list.
Katsina’s N7.4 billion debt servicing expenditure placed it ahead of Kano, which recorded N5.2 billion.
Sokoto followed closely behind Kano with N4.3 billion, while Zamfara’s expenditure stood at N1.5 billion.
The figures show a significant gap between the first four states and the remaining three states in the region.
Combined, Kaduna, Katsina, Kano and Sokoto accounted for N38.4 billion in debt servicing expenditure.
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Adding Zamfara’s N1.5 billion brings the total expenditure of the five highest-spending states in the zone to N39.9 billion.
The figures reported for Jigawa and Kebbi were substantially lower than those recorded by the other states.
Jigawa’s debt servicing expenditure was listed as N0.858 billion, while Kebbi recorded N0.195 billion.
The data reflects variations in the amounts allocated by state governments to debt servicing during the year under review.
Among the states surveyed, Kaduna’s N21.5 billion represented the highest single expenditure on debt servicing.
Katsina’s N7.4 billion figure placed the state in second position, followed by Kano with N5.2 billion and Sokoto with N4.3 billion.
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Zamfara occupied the fifth position with N1.5 billion.
Jigawa and Kebbi recorded the lowest figures in the ranking.
The Northwest geopolitical zone consists of Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Jigawa, Sokoto and Zamfara states.
The data provides a snapshot of debt servicing expenditures across the region during the first quarter of 2026 and highlights the differences in the amounts spent by individual state governments.
While Kaduna recorded the highest expenditure at N21.5 billion, Kebbi recorded the lowest figure at N0.195 billion.
The gap between the highest and lowest reported expenditures underscores the variations in debt servicing commitments among states in the region.
The figures also show that the three states of Kaduna, Katsina and Kano accounted for a substantial share of the debt servicing expenditure recorded in the Northwest during the period under review.
Together, the three states spent N34.1 billion on debt servicing.
When Sokoto’s N4.3 billion is added, the cumulative expenditure rises to N38.4 billion.
The data further indicates that all seven states committed resources to servicing debt obligations during the year.
The expenditure figures form part of the financial commitments undertaken by state governments in the course of administering public finances and meeting existing obligations.
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As recorded in the data, Kaduna led the regional ranking with N21.5 billion, followed by Katsina with N7.4 billion, Kano with N5.2 billion, Sokoto with N4.3 billion, Zamfara with N1.5 billion, Jigawa with N0.858 billion and Kebbi with N0.195 billion.
The figures provide a comparative overview of debt servicing expenditures across the Northwest region in 2025, with Kaduna emerging as the state with the highest reported expenditure during the period.
This development on billions of naira spent on debt servicing comes amid concerns about the prudence of states in terms of their expenditure.
SolaceBase‘s earlier review of the Kaduna State Medium Term Expenditure Framework for the period between 2025 and 2028 has shown that 71% of the Internally Generated Revenue planned for Kaduna State is expected to be spent on debt servicing.
According to the document, the state plans to generate N112.1 billion in 2025, N84.5 billion in 2026, N90.4 billion in 2027, and N98.3 billion in 2028.
SolaceBase‘s review of the Zamfara State Budget performance document also showed that between January and September 2025 alone, the Dauda Lawal administration splashed N2.9 billion on foreign trips.
The review revealed that while the state government was able to expend billions on travel, the performance of several critical sectors remained dismal. For instance, only N1.4 billion was spent on the capital expenditure of the state Ministry of Health, despite a budgeted N52 billion.
Similarly, just N1.7 billion was utilized for the capital expenditure of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. Shockingly, the Zamfara State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency recorded zero naira expenditure, while only N101 million was spent on the Directorate of Water Supply capital projects.
Katsina State, which recorded the second highest debt servicing figure in 2025, spent a total of N224.19 million on foreign medical expenses within the first ten months of the year, even as it plans to allocate N500 million for the same purpose in the 2026 approved budget, raising fresh concerns over continued reliance on overseas healthcare services.
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