Title page

Contents

Foreword 9

Acknowledgments 11

Introduction: International Debt Statistics at 50-Past, Present, and Future 12

Key Takeaways 16

Abbreviations 18

PART 1. Overview 19

1. Analyses of External Debt Stocks and Debt Flows as of End-2022 20

Trends in External Debt Stock, 2012-22 20

Trends in External Debt Stock of IDA-Eligible Countries, 2012-22 22

Debt Indicators, 2012-22 25

Debt Servicing Costs, 2012-22 30

Trends in External Debt Flows, 2012-22 31

New Debt Commitments, 2012-22 36

Notes 41

References 41

2. The Macroeconomic and Debt Outlook for 2023 and Beyond 42

Introduction 42

Notes 45

References 46

3. Charting Improvement in Public Debt Transparency and the Quality of Debt Reporting 47

Efforts to Improve Debt Transparency 47

Direct and Indirect Disclosure of Public Debt Data 48

Notes 50

Reference 50

4. The Debtor Reporting System and the Need for Innovative Approaches to Debt Management 51

Introduction 51

Portfolio Analysis 51

Active Portfolio Management 53

Notes 55

References 55

5. The International Debt Statistics Database: A Gold Mine for Researchers 56

Introduction 56

A Wealth of Data 56

Using IDS Arrears Data to Identify Debt Distress Events 57

Note 59

References 59

PART 2. Aggregate and Country Tables 60

ALL LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COUNTRIES 61

EAST ASIA AND PACIFIC 62

EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA 63

LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN 64

MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA 65

SOUTH ASIA 66

SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA 67

AFGHANISTAN 68

ALBANIA 69

ALGERIA 70

ANGOLA 71

ARGENTINA 72

ARMENIA 73

AZERBAIJAN 74

BANGLADESH 75

BELARUS 76

BELIZE 77

BENIN 78

BHUTAN 79

BOLIVIA 80

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 81

BOTSWANA 82

BRAZIL 83

BULGARIA 84

BURKINA FASO 85

BURUNDI 86

CABO VERDE 87

CAMBODIA 88

CAMEROON 89

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC 90

CHAD 91

CHINA 92

COLOMBIA 93

COMOROS 94

CONGO, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF 95

CONGO, REPUBLIC OF 96

COSTA RICA 97

CÔTE D'IVOIRE 98

DJIBOUTI 99

DOMINICA 100

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 101

ECUADOR 102

EGYPT, ARAB REPUBLIC OF 103

EL SALVADOR 104

ERITREA 105

ESWATINI 106

ETHIOPIA 107

FIJI 108

GABON 109

GAMBIA, THE 110

GEORGIA 111

GHANA 112

GRENADA 113

GUATEMALA 114

GUINEA 115

GUINEA-BISSAU 116

GUYANA 117

HAITI 118

HONDURAS 119

INDIA 120

INDONESIA 121

IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF 122

IRAQ 123

JAMAICA 124

JORDAN 125

KAZAKHSTAN 126

KENYA 127

KOSOVO 128

KYRGYZ REPUBLIC 129

LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC 130

LEBANON 131

LESOTHO 132

LIBERIA 133

MADAGASCAR 134

MALAWI 135

MALDIVES 136

MALI 137

MAURITANIA 138

MAURITIUS 139

MEXICO 140

MOLDOVA 141

MONGOLIA 142

MONTENEGRO 143

MOROCCO 144

MOZAMBIQUE 145

MYANMAR 146

NEPAL 147

NICARAGUA 148

NIGER 149

NIGERIA 150

NORTH MACEDONIA 151

PAKISTAN 152

PAPUA NEW GUINEA 153

PARAGUAY 154

PERU 155

PHILIPPINES 156

RUSSIAN FEDERATION 157

RWANDA 158

SAMOA 159

SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE 160

SENEGAL 161

SERBIA 162

SIERRA LEONE 163

SOLOMON ISLANDS 164

SOMALIA 165

SOUTH AFRICA 166

SRI LANKA 167

ST. LUCIA 168

ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES 169

SUDAN 170

SURINAME 171

SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC 172

TAJIKISTAN 173

TANZANIA 174

THAILAND 175

TIMOR-LESTE 176

TOGO 177

TONGA 178

TUNISIA 179

TÜRKIYE 180

TURKMENISTAN 181

UGANDA 182

UKRAINE 183

UZBEKISTAN 184

VANUATU 185

VIET NAM 186

YEMEN, REPUBLIC OF 187

ZAMBIA 188

ZIMBABWE 189

Appendix 190

Data Sources 191

Country Groups 193

Regional Groups 193

Income Groups 194

Glossary 195

Table 1.1. External Debt Stock of IDA-Eligible Countries, 2012-22 23

Table 1.2. Net Debt Inflows to Low- and Middle-Income Countries, 2012-22 32

Figure 1.1. Percent Change in External Debt Stocks of Low- and Middle-Income Countries, 2012-22 20

Figure 1.2. Share of External Debt Stocks of Low- and Middle-Income Countries, 2012-22 21

Figure 1.3. Composition of Debt Stock in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, 2012-22 22

Figure 1.4. Creditor Composition of Long-Term Public and Publicly Guaranteed External Debt for IDA-Eligible Countries, 2012-22 23

Figure 1.5. External Debt-to-GNI Ratios for Low- and Middle-Income Countries and IDA-Eligible Countries, 2012-22 26

Figure 1.6. Change in External Debt Stock and GNI, by Income and Lending Group, 2012-22 28

Figure 1.7. Change in External Debt Stock and GNI, by Region, 2012-22 28

Figure 1.8. Change in External Debt Stock and Exports, by Income and Lending Group, 2012-22 29

Figure 1.9. Total Debt Service and Interest Payments on External Debt for IDA-Eligible Countries, 2012-22 30

Figure 1.10. Net Debt Inflows to Low- and Middle-Income Countries, by Maturity, 2012-22 31

Figure 1.11. Bond Flows to Low- and Middle-Income Countries (excluding China), by Borrower Type, 2021 vs. 2022 34

Figure 1.12. Net Flows to IDA-Eligible Countries, by Region and Creditor Type, 2022 35

Figure 1.13. Net Equity Inflows and External Debt Flows to Low- and Middle-Income Countries, 2012-22 35

Figure 1.14. Loan Commitments to IDA-Eligible and IBRD-Only Countries, 2012-22 36

Figure 1.15. New Commitments from Multilateral Creditors to IDA-Eligible and IBRD-Only Countries, 2012-22 38

Figure 1.16. New Commitments from Bilateral Creditors to IDA-Eligible and IBRD-Only Countries, 2012-22 38

Figure 1.17. Percent Share of Loan Commitments to IDA-Eligible Countries, by Creditor Type, 2012-22 39

Figure 2.1. Percent Change in Gross Domestic Product Growth, 2018-24 42

Figure 2.2. Changes in External Debt-to-GNI Ratios, 1970-2022 44

Figure 2.3. Composition of Government Expenditures in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, 2010s vs. 2020s 45

Figure 3.1. Performance and Policy Actions, July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2023 48

Figure 4.1. Distribution of Interest Rates on Outstanding External Public Debt across IDA-Only Countries 52

Figure 4.2. Histogram of Commitment Fees across the Debt Portfolio of Official Loans 53

Figure 5.1. Risk of External Debt Distress among IDA-Eligible Countries, 2006-23 57

Figure 5.2. Projected Debt Service Payments and External Default Episodes, Selected Countries, 1970-2021 58

Boxes

Box 1.1. Allocation of the IMF's Special Drawing Rights in 2022 21

Box 1.2. External Debt Data: Concepts, Sources, and Coverage 24

Box 1.3. Debt-to-GDP versus Debt-to-GNI Ratios 26

Box 1.4. World Bank Income and Lending Classifications Used in International Debt Report 2023 27

Box 1.5. China: The Largest Borrower among Low- and Middle-Income Countries 32

Box 1.6. IDA Grants: Contributing to Reducing Debt Vulnerabilities 37

Box 1.7. China: Low- and Middle-Income Countries' Largest Bilateral Creditor 39

Box Figures

Figure B1.1.1. SDR Allocations as a Share of General Government External Debt and International Reserves, by Region, 2022 22

Figure B1.4.1. Number of Low- and Middle-Income Countries and Guyana Covered in International Debt Report 2023, by FY2024 Income and Lending Groups 27

Figure B1.5.1. Net Financial Flows to China, 2012-22 32

Figure B1.6.1. IDA Gross and Net Inflows of Credits and Grants to IDA-Eligible Countries, 2012-22 37

Figure B1.7.1. Low- and Middle-Income Countries' Debt to China, by Region, 2012-22 39

Figure B1.7.2. Commitments from China to Low- and Middle-Income Countries, by Region 2012-22 40