Each resident of Kwara State carries an average debt burden of ₦236,248, the highest in Nigeria, according to new figures from Statisense, based on data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), National Population Commission (NPC) and Debt Management Office (DMO).

The report, released in March, ranked Plateau second with ₦73,291 per person and Nasarawa third at ₦48,016. Enugu topped the South East with ₦37,883 per resident, while Delta led the South South at ₦34,240.

Gombe (₦29,629), Bayelsa (₦27,257), Niger (₦26,883) and the Federal Capital Territory (₦26,875) also featured in the top 10 states with the highest per capita debt. Cross River (₦24,518), Akwa Ibom (₦22,093) and Benue (₦19,915) rounded off the list of 12.

The data highlights a wide gap between Kwara and other states, with its debt per indigene more than three times that of Plateau, the next state on the chart.