Short-term debt (% of total external debt) in Gambia
Gambia: Short-term debt (% of total external debt) was 6.2% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Short-term debt in Gambia, 1970–2025
Source: International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of total external debt.
Analysis
The most recent figure for short-term debt in Gambia is 6.2%, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of up 67.2% on the previous year and up 197.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, short-term debt in Gambia peaked at 24.6% in 1979 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1970.
Gambia ranks 74th of 123 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Short-term debt (% of total external debt) in Gambia, year by year
| Year | % of total external debt | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.0% | — |
| 1971 | 0.0% | — |
| 1972 | 0.0% | — |
| 1973 | 0.0% | — |
| 1974 | 0.0% | — |
| 1975 | 0.0% | — |
| 1976 | 0.0% | — |
| 1977 | 18.5% | — |
| 1978 | 20.2% | +9.2% |
| 1979 | 24.6% | +22.2% |
| 1980 | 17.0% | -30.9% |
| 1981 | 10.5% | -38.3% |
| 1982 | 9.5% | -9.7% |
| 1983 | 11.8% | +24.1% |
| 1984 | 19.8% | +68.4% |
| 1985 | 14.4% | -27.1% |
| 1986 | 10.5% | -27.0% |
| 1987 | 7.2% | -32.1% |
| 1988 | 4.2% | -41.6% |
| 1989 | 3.3% | -21.4% |
| 1990 | 4.3% | +29.7% |
| 1991 | 5.4% | +25.6% |
| 1992 | 5.3% | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 10.0% | +87.0% |
| 1994 | 5.6% | -44.2% |
| 1995 | 3.5% | -37.7% |
| 1996 | 5.0% | +43.5% |
| 1997 | 3.1% | -37.6% |
| 1998 | 3.4% | +8.2% |
| 1999 | 4.7% | +39.5% |
| 2000 | 5.6% | +18.7% |
| 2001 | 5.4% | -2.9% |
| 2002 | 6.4% | +18.4% |
| 2003 | 5.1% | -20.6% |
| 2004 | 4.0% | -22.2% |
| 2005 | 3.4% | -14.3% |
| 2006 | 2.5% | -25.8% |
| 2007 | 3.1% | +24.2% |
| 2008 | 4.1% | +30.2% |
| 2009 | 8.2% | +100.8% |
| 2010 | 8.2% | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 0.2% | -97.9% |
| 2012 | 4.0% | +2186.6% |
| 2013 | 2.2% | -44.6% |
| 2014 | 2.4% | +10.7% |
| 2015 | 2.1% | -14.2% |
| 2016 | 2.9% | +36.8% |
| 2017 | 1.9% | -33.3% |
| 2018 | 2.4% | +26.1% |
| 2019 | 3.0% | +26.3% |
| 2020 | 3.0% | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 3.4% | +13.7% |
| 2022 | 3.4% | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 6.9% | +101.0% |
| 2024 | 3.7% | -45.7% |
| 2025 | 6.2% | +67.2% |
Gambia compared with similar countries
- Gambia's 6.2% is above the median for low income countries, which is 2.5%, 2.5× the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Gambia's 6.2% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 5.2%, 1.2× the median. (44 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Short-term debt (% of total external debt) in Gambia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | +2186.6% | 0.2% | 4.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.3% | 0.0% | 24.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 10.8% | 3.3% | 19.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.0% | 3.1% | 10.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.8% | 2.5% | 8.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.9% | 0.2% | 8.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.4% | 3.0% | 6.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Gambia
- 71 Congo 6.7% compare
- 72 Cote d'Ivoire 6.7% compare
- 73 Sierra Leone 6.6% compare
- 75 Democratic Republic of Congo 6.2% compare
- 76 Senegal 6.0% compare
- 77 Mongolia 5.8% compare
More external debt data for Gambia
- IFC, private nonguaranteed (NFL, US$), per capita -0.0288 NFL, US$ per person (2024)
- IFC, private nonguaranteed (NFL, US$), per unit of GDP -0 NFL, US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- IFC, private nonguaranteed (NFL, US$), per square kilometre -30.29 NFL, US$ per square kilometre (2023)
- Net financial flows, IDA (NFL, current US$), per capita -0.9239 NFL, current US$ per person (2024)
- Net financial flows, IDA (NFL, current US$), per unit of GDP -0.0011 NFL, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Net financial flows, IDA (NFL, current US$), per square kilometre 163.93 NFL, current US$ per square kilometre (2023)
- Use of IMF credit 333.31 million DOD, current US$ (2025)
- External debt stocks, public and publicly guaranteed (PPG) 1.05 billion DOD, current US$ (2025)
- External debt stocks, long-term 1.35 billion DOD, current US$ (2025)
- External debt stocks, short-term 112.06 million DOD, current US$ (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is short-term debt in Gambia?
- Short-term debt in Gambia was 6.2% in 2025, according to International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB).
- What is the highest short-term debt recorded in Gambia?
- The highest recorded value was 24.6% in 1979.
- What is the lowest short-term debt recorded in Gambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1970.
- How does Gambia rank for short-term debt?
- Gambia ranks 74th out of 123 countries with data for 2025.
- Is short-term debt rising or falling in Gambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 197.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Gambia data come from?
- The figures come from International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB), published as part of Short-term debt (% of total external debt). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Short-term debt includes all debt having an original maturity of one year or less and interest in arrears on long-term debt. Total external debt is debt owed to nonresidents repayable in currency, goods, or services. Total external debt is the sum of public, publicly guaranteed, and private nonguaranteed long-term debt, use of IMF credit, and short-term debt.