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Nigeria and the Chinese Debt Trap Myth

by Eric Olander

The current slump in global oil prices combined with a surge of Nigerian borrowing is prompting a fresh wave of media anxiety related to the country’s financial future and specifically whether China will take advantage of the growing instability to seize strategic assets in the event of a debt default. 

Even though Nigeria only owes China $3.121 billion of its estimated $80 billion of outstanding debts (just under 4%) mainstream newspapers regularly publish the roundly discredited debt trap narrative.

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