External debt, end year (current LCU) by country
Foreign debt consists of the outstanding stock or recognized, direct liabilities of the government to the rest of the world, generated in the past and scheduled to be extinguished by government operations in the future or to continue as perpetual debt. Data are in current local currency.
What the numbers show
External debt, end year (current LCU) is currently reported for 47 countries. The highest value is 107.87 trillion current LCU in Mozambique; the lowest is 0 current LCU in Kenya.
The median across all reporting countries is 110.07 billion current LCU, and the mean is 3.78 trillion current LCU.
Over the past decade 29 countries rose and 16 fell. The largest increase was in Guinea-Bissau (up 9,531.3%), and the largest decrease in Cape Verde (down 100.0%).
External debt, end year: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mozambique | 107.87 trillion current LCU | 2011 | up 7.9% | rising |
| 2 | Tanzania | 16.94 trillion current LCU | 2011 | up 159.0% | volatile |
| 3 | Guinea | 9.71 trillion current LCU | 2011 | up 202.1% | volatile |
| 4 | Zambia | 9.56 trillion current LCU | 2011 | down 64.7% | volatile |
| 5 | Uganda | 6.11 trillion current LCU | 2011 | up 4.4% | volatile |
| 6 | Cote d'Ivoire | 5.30 trillion current LCU | 2011 | down 19.4% | rising |
| 7 | Madagascar | 3.75 trillion current LCU | 1996 | up 776.5% | volatile |
| 8 | Nigeria | 3.62 trillion current LCU | 2002 | up 397.4% | volatile |
| 9 | Sao Tome and Principe | 3.58 trillion current LCU | 2011 | up 26.3% | volatile |
| 10 | Angola | 1.92 trillion current LCU | 2011 | up 882.7% | volatile |
| 11 | Senegal | 1.74 trillion current LCU | 2011 | down 26.1% | volatile |
| 12 | Burundi | 1.56 trillion current LCU | 2004 | up 471.9% | volatile |
| 13 | Gabon | 986.85 billion current LCU | 2008 | down 51.8% | rising |
| 14 | Malawi | 907.97 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 422.0% | volatile |
| 15 | Chad | 705.21 billion current LCU | 1999 | — | volatile |
| 16 | Cameroon | 576.07 billion current LCU | 2009 | down 83.8% | volatile |
| 17 | Guinea-Bissau | 519.39 billion current LCU | 2006 | up 9,531.3% | volatile |
| 18 | Algeria | 414.56 billion current LCU | 2011 | down 73.2% | falling |
| 19 | Rwanda | 370.46 billion current LCU | 2008 | down 3.5% | volatile |
| 20 | Sierra Leone | 322.30 billion current LCU | 2007 | down 77.7% | volatile |
| 21 | Egypt | 147.49 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 288.0% | volatile |
| 22 | Burkina Faso | 117.23 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 8.7% | volatile |
| 23 | Morocco | 114.55 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 3.6% | volatile |
| 24 | South Africa | 110.07 billion current LCU | 2008 | up 70.2% | volatile |
| 25 | Comoros | 103.62 billion current LCU | 2008 | up 32.8% | rising |
| 26 | Ethiopia | 100.30 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 110.2% | volatile |
| 27 | Central African Republic | 92.22 billion current LCU | 2009 | down 83.0% | rising |
| 28 | Djibouti | 74.58 billion current LCU | 2005 | up 57.2% | rising |
| 29 | Sudan | 71.70 billion current LCU | 2002 | up 1,204.8% | volatile |
| 30 | Mauritius | 40.80 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 56.2% | volatile |
| 31 | Ghana | 20.81 billion current LCU | 2010 | up 259.1% | volatile |
| 32 | Tunisia | 19.07 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 69.3% | volatile |
| 33 | Botswana | 18.58 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 656.1% | volatile |
| 34 | Eritrea | 13.77 billion current LCU | 2009 | up 495.8% | volatile |
| 35 | Gambia | 10.49 billion current LCU | 2004 | up 199.0% | volatile |
| 36 | Lesotho | 6.00 billion current LCU | 2011 | down 11.1% | volatile |
| 37 | Zimbabwe | 5.83 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 123.9% | volatile |
| 38 | Namibia | 5.40 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 648.4% | volatile |
| 39 | Eswatini | 4.30 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 51.5% | volatile |
| 40 | Togo | 1.54 billion current LCU | 2011 | up 16.3% | volatile |
| 41 | Congo | 1.43 billion current LCU | 2011 | down 73.5% | volatile |
| 42 | Seychelles | 583.35 million current LCU | 2010 | down 61.1% | rising |
| 43 | Cape Verde | 14,614 current LCU | 2010 | down 100.0% | volatile |
| 44 | Mauritania | 0 current LCU | 1994 | — | flat |
| 44 | Equatorial Guinea | 0 current LCU | 2003 | down 100.0% | volatile |
| 44 | Mali | 0 current LCU | 2001 | down 100.0% | volatile |
| 44 | Kenya | 0 current LCU | 2011 | down 100.0% | volatile |
About this data
Foreign debt consists of the outstanding stock or recognized, direct liabilities of the government to the rest of the world, generated in the past and scheduled to be extinguished by government operations in the future or to continue as perpetual debt. Data are in current local currency.