Gross external debt, Percent of GDP (Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual, Sixth Edition (BPM6)) by country
Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Economic Outlook (REO) provides information on recent economic developments and prospects for countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Data for the REO for sub-Saharan Africa are prepared in conjunction with the semi-annual World Economic Outlook (WEO) exercises, spring and fall.
What the numbers show
Gross external debt, Percent of GDP (Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual, Sixth Edition (BPM6)) is currently reported for 45 countries. The highest value is 85.64 in Senegal; the lowest is 3.86 in Equatorial Guinea.
The median across all reporting countries is 26.53, and the mean is 30.97.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 22.
Over the past decade 21 countries rose and 24 fell. The largest increase was in Nigeria (up 287.6%), and the largest decrease in Namibia (down 63.6%).
Gross external debt, Percent of GDP (Balance of Payments and): full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Senegal | 85.64 | 2027 | up 113.9% | volatile |
| 2 | Mozambique | 70.65 | 2027 | down 21.5% | rising |
| 3 | Zambia | 63.68 | 2025 | up 102.4% | volatile |
| 4 | Rwanda | 61.93 | 2027 | up 66.5% | volatile |
| 5 | Eritrea | 61.73 | 2019 | down 12.3% | falling |
| 6 | Cape Verde | 61.21 | 2027 | down 31.4% | rising |
| 7 | Benin | 51.1 | 2027 | up 205.2% | volatile |
| 8 | Gambia | 41.11 | 2027 | down 10.2% | falling |
| 9 | Liberia | 39.7 | 2027 | up 67.1% | volatile |
| 10 | Madagascar | 39.67 | 2027 | up 64.5% | volatile |
| 11 | Lesotho | 38.06 | 2027 | up 2.1% | falling |
| 12 | Angola | 36.12 | 2027 | up 9.9% | volatile |
| 13 | Cote d'Ivoire | 33.29 | 2027 | up 67.9% | falling |
| 14 | Seychelles | 32.19 | 2027 | up 21.0% | falling |
| 15 | Comoros | 31.52 | 2027 | up 75.4% | falling |
| 16 | Eswatini | 31.47 | 2027 | up 154.7% | rising |
| 17 | Congo | 31.08 | 2027 | down 50.9% | volatile |
| 18 | Tanzania | 30.44 | 2027 | up 8.0% | falling |
| 19 | South Sudan | 30.25 | 2027 | down 31.2% | falling |
| 20 | Togo | 28.89 | 2027 | up 81.9% | volatile |
| 21 | Kenya | 27.06 | 2027 | up 0.3% | rising |
| 22 | Ethiopia | 26.84 | 2027 | down 7.7% | volatile |
| 23 | Zimbabwe | 26.53 | 2027 | down 6.8% | rising |
| 24 | Guinea-Bissau | 25.99 | 2027 | down 13.3% | volatile |
| 25 | Gabon | 25.97 | 2027 | down 36.0% | falling |
| 26 | Sao Tome and Principe | 25.1 | 2027 | down 57.0% | volatile |
| 27 | Niger | 24.57 | 2027 | down 2.7% | volatile |
| 28 | Ghana | 24.56 | 2027 | down 35.5% | rising |
| 29 | Cameroon | 23.99 | 2027 | down 5.8% | volatile |
| 30 | Sierra Leone | 23.19 | 2027 | down 10.4% | volatile |
| 31 | Central African Republic | 23.03 | 2027 | down 31.1% | volatile |
| 32 | Malawi | 22.1 | 2027 | down 2.2% | volatile |
| 33 | Guinea | 22.06 | 2027 | up 7.5% | volatile |
| 34 | Uganda | 21.93 | 2027 | up 0.3% | volatile |
| 35 | South Africa | 19.64 | 2027 | up 0.7% | rising |
| 36 | Burkina Faso | 19.1 | 2027 | down 14.7% | falling |
| 37 | Chad | 17.51 | 2027 | down 21.2% | falling |
| 38 | Nigeria | 16.85 | 2027 | up 287.6% | volatile |
| 39 | Botswana | 15.34 | 2027 | up 16.8% | rising |
| 40 | Mauritius | 15.12 | 2027 | up 20.9% | rising |
| 41 | Mali | 15.02 | 2027 | down 31.5% | volatile |
| 42 | Democratic Republic of Congo | 14.54 | 2027 | down 11.8% | volatile |
| 43 | Burundi | 8.24 | 2027 | down 49.8% | volatile |
| 44 | Namibia | 5.81 | 2027 | down 63.6% | volatile |
| 45 | Equatorial Guinea | 3.86 | 2027 | down 58.2% | volatile |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.
- West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) 32.16
- SSA middle-income countries excluding South Africa and Nigeria 30.66
- SSA low-income countries excluding countries in fragile situations 29.36
- SSA oil-exporting countries excluding Nigeria 29.24
- CFA franc zone 28.84
- Sub-Saharan Africa excluding Nigeria and South Africa 28.25
- East African Community (EAC) 28.18
- SSA oil-importing countries excluding South Africa 28.02
- Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) 25.92
- SSA oil-importing countries 25.8
- SSA low-income countries 25.69
- Southern African Development Community (SADC) 25.03
- Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) 24.87
- Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) 24.68
- SSA middle-income countries 24.49
- SSA oil-exporting countries 22.38
- Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) 22.21
- Fragile and Conflict-affected States (FCS) 21.03
- Southern African Customs Union (SACU) 19.22
About this data
Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Economic Outlook (REO) provides information on recent economic developments and prospects for countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Data for the REO for sub-Saharan Africa are prepared in conjunction with the semi-annual World Economic Outlook (WEO) exercises, spring and fall.