FG won’t publish details of $5bn Abu Dhabi loan — Oyedele

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 plans to spend funds drawn from its $5bn financing facility with First Abu Dhabi Bank.

Oyedele said the transaction had been subjected to unnecessary scrutiny, arguing that the facility was approved by the National Assembly and was structured to help the government refinance more expensive debt.

He spoke on Wednesday during a media briefing in Abuja.

The Federal Government recently drew about $1.5bn, the first tranche of the $5bn Total Return Swap facility arranged with First Abu Dhabi Bank, despite concerns from the International Monetary Fund and Fitch Ratings over the transparency and risks associated with such financing structures.

The $5bn facility was approved by the National Assembly on March 31, 2026, while the initial drawdown was expected to support the 2026 budget, infrastructure projects and the refinancing of existing debt obligations.

Responding to a question on the borrowing plan and whether details of the First Abu Dhabi Bank transaction would be made public, Oyedele said the government would publish information on how it spends public funds but questioned why the particular facility was receiving 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.