WB: Debts of Third World Hit $ 9 Trillion at End of 2021

The World Bank (WB) said that the total external debt of developing economies, low and middle income, reached $ 9 trillion by the end of 2021, more than double the number recorded a decade ago.

The WB added that the poorest countries eligible to borrow from its International Development Association are now spending more than 10% of their export earnings to service their long-term public and government-guaranteed external debt, the highest percentage since 2000.

The World Bank's new International Debt Report highlights the risks associated with rising debt for all developing economies - low- and middle-income alike.

At the end of 2021, IDA-eligible countries' debt service payments on long-term, government-guaranteed public external debt totaled $46.2 billion, equivalent to 10.3 percent of their exports of goods and services, and 1.8 percent of their gross national income, according to the report.