“As of December 31, 2023, the domestic debt of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) of Nigeria was ₦5.862 trillion, according to the Debt Management Office (DMO). As of June 2024, the domestic debt of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Nigeria was N4.27 trillion. This was a 5% increase from March 2024, when the debt was N4.07 trillion.”
The numbers speak a harsh truth—₦5.862 trillion in domestic debt as of December 31, 2023, a staggering sum that leaves Nigeria teetering on the edge of fiscal ruin. This is not just an economic statistic; it is a manifestation of years of financial recklessness, poor governance, and the mismanagement of resources. As of June 2024, this debt has only deepened, rising by 5% in a matter of months, signaling an unrelenting cycle of financial mismanagement. For Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), this is a crippling burden. But more than just a financial crisis, it speaks to a far deeper malaise: the exploitation of resources, particularly oil and gas, and the systemic denial of autonomy to regions like the Niger Delta, whose very existence is entwined with the wealth of these natural resources.
At the heart of Nigeria’s financial crisis lies a profound paradox: the nation is rich in resources—vast oil fields, bountiful natural gas reserves, and an abundance of untapped potential. Yet, despite this wealth, the country is mired in debt, poverty, and underdevelopment. This disparity is not merely a matter of bad luck or unfortunate circumstances—it is a direct result of the reckless management and systematic plundering of the nation’s oil and gas wealth. The oil-rich Niger Delta, home to the Ijaw people, has long borne the brunt of this exploitation. For decades, its lands have been ravaged, its waters poisoned, and its people dispossessed of the wealth that rightfully belongs to them.
While the country’s elites have enriched themselves through the proceeds of oil and gas, the people of the Niger Delta have languished in poverty, their lands despoiled, their voices silenced. This is the injustice at the heart of Nigeria’s fiscal crisis. How can a nation claim to be free, to be sovereign, when its wealth is mismanaged, its people impoverished, and its resources siphoned off by those who have no stake in its future? The Ijaw people, along with other marginalized communities in the Niger Delta, have long demanded recognition, justice, and, most crucially, the right to self-determination. Their call is not one of greed, but of survival. They seek not just the equitable distribution of resources, but the ability to control their own destiny, to manage the wealth of their lands for their own benefit.
The mismanagement of oil and gas resources is not just a financial issue—it is a moral one. The Nigerian government has repeatedly failed to ensure that the wealth generated from these resources benefits the very people who bear the burden of their extraction. Instead, this wealth has been funneled into the pockets of a corrupt elite, leaving communities in the Niger Delta in a perpetual state of deprivation. It is a tragedy of the highest order that, in a country so rich in natural resources, the people who provide the nation’s greatest source of wealth are left to suffer the most. This is not just an economic imbalance; it is a social injustice that demands to be addressed.
In light of these challenges, the case for self-determination—particularly as advocated by the Ijaw people—becomes undeniable. The Ijaw, along with other ethnic groups in the Niger Delta, have long struggled to break free from the shackles of exploitation and marginalization. They have called for the autonomy to control their own resources, to manage their own affairs, and to chart a future that is no longer dictated by external forces. This is not a call for separatism or division; it is a call for fairness, for justice, and for the right to govern their own lands and resources.
The financial recklessness that has characterized Nigeria’s management of its resources has left the country vulnerable, trapped in a cycle of debt that seems impossible to break. But this is a crisis of opportunity as much as it is one of mismanagement. The Ijaw people’s quest for self-determination represents a chance to turn the tide, to break free from the chains of financial mismanagement, and to build a future that is sustainable, equitable, and just.
It is time for Nigeria to confront the legacy of exploitation and mismanagement, and to recognize that true independence can only be achieved when all regions, all peoples, are granted the power to determine their own futures. The Ijaw people’s struggle for self-determination is not just a struggle for political autonomy—it is a struggle for justice, for dignity, and for the right to control the very resources that have been the lifeblood of the nation.
It is a fight that demands the world’s attention, and it is a fight that must be won. For if Nigeria is ever to realize its true potential, it must first learn to empower those who have been left behind—those who have given so much and received so little in return. The Ijaw people’s call for self-determination is not just their call—it is the call of all marginalized peoples, of all those who have been silenced for far too long. It is time for their voices to be heard.
Professor Mondy Gold, LFP, FCILG, FESB, PhD is; the President, Ijaw Diaspora Council & Amadabo of Ijaw Diaspora; Chairman, National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) USA; Nigerian Peace Ambassador, Inducted into the Nigerian Hall of Fame; and Recipient of the United States President’s Lifetime Achievement Award
