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Obstacles to progress

Realities

In contrast, Sudan, Guinea, and the Comoros experienced a decline in the general government

gross debt that exceeded 10 percentage points of GDP--specifically, 14, 10, and 14 percentage
points of GDP, respectively. However, their average levels of public debt in 2015–16 were very

different--with the Comoros at 26 percent of GDP, Guinea at 55 percent, and Sudan at 69
percent. “
"Assessing Fiscal Space in Sub-Saharan Africa" 219
Calderón, César, Punam Chuhan-Pole, and Yirbehogre Modeste Some
*****

“ It has only been 14 years since officials from major creditor countries (a group known as the
Paris Club)[2] and multilaterals adopted the ambitious Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI)

for outright forgiveness of debt owed by a group of 36 low-income poor countries.[3] The
majority of these countries, 29, in fact, were African.
***
A decade and half after the massive debt forgiveness, African debt is in the global news again.
Since 2013, the region's debt has been on the rise, with the median debt ratio as percent of

GDP increasing from 31 percent in 2012 to 53 percent in 2017. This growing public
indebtedness is fuelled not only by domestic, but also external debt, as both categories have

risen by about 10 percentage points.
***
about one-third of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa are either in or at high risk of debt
distress

***
external and foreign-currency denominated debt is predominant, accounting for about 60

percent of total debt on average, exposing these countries to swings in global market
conditions. “

"Is Sub-Saharan Africa Facing Another Systemic Sovereign Debt Crisis?" 220
Senbet, Brahima Coulibaly, Dhruv Gandhi, and Lemma.
***** ***** *****
Debt Trap
“ During the 1970s loans were given freely at very low interest rates but this situation changed
dramatically in the early 1980s. The USA pushed up interest rates drastically in an attempt to

stop inflation. 'Developing' countries that had taken out loans with US banks now had to pay
huge interests. The major lending banks in Europe followed suit and the debt crisis was born.

'Developing' countries were unable to repay their loans and were forced to take up new loans to
pay the interest. In 1980 the total debt of developing countries stood at US$ 567 billion.
Between 1980 and 1992 these countries paid back US$ 1662 billion. However, because of the