The 50th edition of the ‘International Debt Report 2023’ published by the World Bank features external debt statistics and analysis for the 122 low- and middle-income countries that report to the World Bank Debt Reporting System (DRS). Debt-service payments, which include principal and interest, increased by 5% over the previous year for all developing countries as global interest rates remain at four-decade highs. This comes after Ethiopia recently failed to pay a $33m bond coupon and looks set to become the latest African country to default on its debt. Rating agency Fitch Ratings downgraded Ethiopia’s credit rating on Thursday (14 December) to junk status, while markets now expect Ethiopia to join Zambia and Ghana as Africa’s latest debt defaulters. Another World Bank report entitled ‘Unlocking the Development Potential of Public Debt in Sub-Saharan Africa’ notes that a number of African countries have in recent years experienced a considerable increase in public debt and risk.

Source: The North Africa Journal December 19, 2023 11:44 UTC