Government debt-to-GDP ratio rises to 63.2%
Government debt rose on a yearly basis by 6.9% to 63.2% compared to a year ago, according to the latest quarterly report of the Bank of Namibia.
This is an increase from the total debt as a percentage of GDP figure of 62% at the end of March 2021. The government’s debt stock rose over the year to the end of June 2021, owing to further issuances of government securities as well as loans from the International Monetary Fund and the African Development Bank to finance the budget deficit.
The total government debt stood at N$118.9 billion at the end of June 2021, representing a yearly and quarterly increase of 17.5% and 7.7%, respectively.
The increases on a yearly and quarterly basis were driven by a rise in the issuance of both Treasury Bills and Internal Registered Stock, coupled with the disbursement of the IMF loan and supplementary financing from the AfDB to finance the budget deficit.
“Central government loan guarantees declined during the period under review, mainly due to repayments of foreign loans which were guaranteed by the government for the energy and transport sectors, as well as the appreciation of the Namibia Dollar against the US Dollar,” the Bank of Namibia reports.
