Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke has denied taking any foreign loans, secretly or openly, since assuming office in November 2022.
The governor was responding to a Debt Management Office report that showed the state’s external debt rose by approximately $26.56 million between December 2024 and June 2026.
According to the DMO, Osun’s total external debt stood at $101.70 million as at June 30, 2026, compared with $75.14 million as at December 31, 2024.
In a statement, Adeleke explained that the increase reflected a $25.8 million external loan taken by the previous administration for the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP). He said the loan’s repayment matured by December 2025, leading to its inclusion in the DMO report.
The governor added that four other similar external loans obtained by the previous administration had also matured and could soon appear in the state’s debt profile.
Adeleke maintained that his administration had not taken any external loan as part of a strategy for sustainable financial management. He described claims of secret borrowing as fake news and said any future loans would be handled with full transparency and due process.
