By Biola Lawal
FLOWERBUDNEWS: Governor Ademola Adeleke has not taken any foreign loans, either secretly or openly since he took over the reign of governance in November 2022, and any contrary insinuation is mere fake news.
The governor made the declaration while responding to a recent publication of the state foreign debt stock by the Debt Management Office (DMO) which showed an increase by approximately $26.56 million between December 2024 and June 2026.
This was disclosed in a statement by Mallam Olawale Rasheed, the Spokesperson to the State Governor.
The DMO’s external debt stock report as at June 30, 2026, puts Osun State’s total external debt at $101.70 million, compared with $75.14 million recorded as at December 31, 2024. The difference represents an increase of approximately $26.56 million within 18 months.
A breakdown of the DMO figures shows that the state’s multilateral debt increased from approximately $67.60 million in December 2024 to $94.15 million in June 2026. Its bilateral debt also recorded a marginal increase, moving from approximately $7.54 million to $7.55 million within the same period.
Clarifying the details of the debt profile, the governor stated that the DMO had reflected the sum of $25.8 million dollars external loan taking by the previous administration for the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP).
The loan repayment process had matured by December 2025, hence its inclusion by DMO in its report, the state governor explained.
The governor further submitted that there are four similar external loans by the previous administration which have matured for repayment and which may soon be reflected in the state external debt stock.
Governor Adeleke also noted that his administration has not taken any external loan as a strategy for sustainable financial management of the state resources, chiding those accusing the state government of secretly taking foreign loans as ignorant of the statutory procedures for applying for and accessing foreign loan.
“The above clarification is necessary to set the records straight. If at all, our administration is to take loans for any reason, it will be open to the public with utmost transparency and compliance with due process”, the governor was quoted as saying.
