President Bola Tinubu has requested the National Assembly to approve an extra \$347 million in external loans under the 2025–2026 borrowing plan. The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, read the president’s letter containing the request during plenary on Wednesday. In the letter, President Tinubu explained that the increase is needed to cover additional funding requirements for two key national projects. He said the cost of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project had risen by \$47 million — from an initial \$700 million to \$747 million — due to financing gaps. According to the president, when the borrowing plan was initially submitted, only \$700 million had been secured by the lead arranger. The \$47 million shortfall, he noted, was later covered through export credit agencies, and it has now become necessary to reflect this increase in the borrowing plan. In addition, Tinubu is seeking \$300 million for the Nigerian Universal Communications Access Project, which aims to deploy 7,000 telecommunications towers across underserved and unserved areas to reduce the digital divide. He explained that the project was mistakenly left out during the earlier compilation of the borrowing plan. Recall that in May, the president initially sought approval for a borrowing package comprising \$21,543,647,912, ₦2,193,856,324.54, ¥15 billion, and a €65 million grant. With the additional allocations — \$47 million for the Lagos-Calabar Highway and \$300 million for the telecom project — the total external loan component of the plan has now risen to \$21,890,647,912. The House of Representatives approved the president’s new request following the presentation of a report by Abubakar Nalaraba, Chairman of the Committee on Aids, Loans, and Debt Management. The Senate had already granted its approval on Tuesday. Despite the increased borrowing, the House maintained that the federal government’s debt profile remains within sustainable limits. “At over N145 trillion, debt to GDP ratio of about 50% is within the international threshold (56%),” the parliament said. “The current administration has succeeded in reducing the high debt service to revenue ratio from over 90% to less than 70 percent. “The federal government’s capacity to service the new debt is bolstered by the anticipated revenue gains from the Nigerian Tax Act 2025, projected to grow by over 18 percent year-on-year starting from 2026.” The House added that the anticipated revenue expansion reduces the risk of future debt distress and provides a buffer for debt servicing.