Africa Western and Central: Short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Africa Western and Central's short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) fell 0.78 percentage points on 2023 (from 20.54% to 19.76%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −0.54 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 8.99 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 18.35 percentage points in 1995 and the biggest yearly fall was 27.38 percentage points in 1999. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.66 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 37% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

What this measures

Short-term external debt is defined as debt that has an original maturity of one year or less. Available data permit no distinction between public and private nonguaranteed short-term debt. Exports of goods, services and primary income is the sum of goods (merchandise) exports, exports of (nonfactor) services and income (factor) receipts.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 51 values

Short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 25.35% (2020)
• Algeria — 3.16% (2024)
• Djibouti — 9.38% (2024)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 46.27% (2024)
• Iraq — 0.63% (2024)
• Jordan — 72.1% (2024)
• Lebanon — 135.85% (2023)
• Morocco — 10.86% (2024)
• Pakistan

More economic policy & debt data for Africa Western and Central

• GDP (current US$) — US$852.53 billion (2025)
• GDP (constant 2015 US$) — US$991.22 billion (2025)
• GDP per capita (current US$) — US$1,600 (2025)
• GDP per capita (constant 2015 US$) — US$1,860 (2025)
• GDP (annual % growth) — 4.6% (2025)
• GDP per capita (annual % growth) — 2.21% (2025)
• Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$) — US$21.54 billion (2025)
• Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) — 2.53% (2025)
• Short-term debt (% of total reserves) — 46.6% (2024)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Africa Western and Central's short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income)?

19.76% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1974?

It is up 19.32 percentage points from 0.44% in 1974. The highest value was 66.91% in 1998 and the lowest 0.41% in 1976.

Is the latest change in short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) unusual for Africa Western and Central?

In 2024, Africa Western and Central's short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) fell 0.78 percentage points on 2023 (from 20.54% to 19.76%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −0.54 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 8.99 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator DT.DOD.DSTC.XP.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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