Effect of Debt Management on Economic Development in Nigeria: Evidence from Panel Regression Analysis

Abstract

The key objective of this study was to determine the effect of debt management on economic development in Nigeria from 2000-2024. The study which was anchored on The Institutional Theory, utilized the ex-post facto research design given that the data already existed.. The sample size covers the entire Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The findings of the study indicated that debt servicing cost has positive and significant effect on poverty and unemployment rate in Nigeria. Besides, Government fiscal deficit has positive and significant effect on poverty as well as unemployment rate in Nigeria. Hence it was concluded that debt management has a significant effect on economic development in Nigeria. It was thus recommended that policymakers should limit reliance on debt servicing cost for short-term growth objectives and also, the government should prioritize domestic borrowing as a tool for economic expansion.