Total debt service in South Africa
South Africa: Total debt service was 1.6% in 2011. ▼ Falling
Total debt service in South Africa, 1994–2011
Source: World Bank, Global Development Finance. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 1.6% for total debt service in 2011.
That represents a change of down 7.2% on the previous year and down 56.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total debt service in South Africa peaked at 4.4% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 1.4%, in 2004.
That places South Africa 16th out of 50 countries with data for 2011, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 18 years of available data.
Total debt service in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 2.1% | — |
| 1995 | 2.2% | +5.0% |
| 1996 | 2.9% | +31.4% |
| 1997 | 4.4% | +49.1% |
| 1998 | 3.3% | -25.6% |
| 1999 | 3.2% | -1.1% |
| 2000 | 2.9% | -9.2% |
| 2001 | 3.7% | +25.5% |
| 2002 | 4.4% | +20.5% |
| 2003 | 1.8% | -59.3% |
| 2004 | 1.4% | -23.9% |
| 2005 | 2.0% | +46.4% |
| 2006 | 2.8% | +37.4% |
| 2007 | 1.7% | -38.7% |
| 2008 | 2.2% | +29.9% |
| 2009 | 1.6% | -28.8% |
| 2010 | 1.7% | +9.5% |
| 2011 | 1.6% | -7.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.0% | 2.1% | 4.4% | 6 |
| 2000s | 2.4% | 1.4% | 4.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.7% | 1.6% | 1.7% | 2 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More external debt data for South Africa
- IFC, private nonguaranteed -15.41 million NFL, US$ (2024)
- IFC, private nonguaranteed (NFL, US$), per capita -0.2407 NFL, US$ 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$), per square kilometre 444.22 NFL, US$ per square kilometre (2023)
- Public and publicly guaranteed debt service 2.3% (2024)
- Net financial flows, IBRD 910.75 million NFL, current US$ (2024)
- Public and publicly guaranteed debt service 6.5% (2024)
- Net financial flows, IBRD (NFL, current US$), annual growth rate -109.7 % change on previous year (2023)
- Other investment, Debt instruments 53.54 billion US dollar (2025)
- Use of IMF credit 7.63 billion DOD, current US$ (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is total debt service in South Africa?
- Total debt service in South Africa was 1.6% in 2011, according to World Bank, Global Development Finance.
- What is the highest total debt service recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 4.4% in 2002.
- What is the lowest total debt service recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.4% in 2004.
- How does South Africa rank for total debt service?
- South Africa ranks 16th out of 50 countries with data for 2011.
- Is total debt service rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 56.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank, Global Development Finance, published as part of Total debt service (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF.