The world’s 26 poorest economies are facing the most significant debt burden since 2006, the World Bank announced in a new report published Sunday.
Government debt in these countries, which are home to around 40 percent of the world’s population, now stands at an average of 72 percent of GDP — an 18-year high — the Washington-based development lender said.
At the same time, the amount of international aid they receive as a share of their economic output has shrunk to a two-decade low.
“There is much that low-income economies can -— and must -— do for themselves,” the World Bank’s deputy chief economist, Ayhan Kose, said in a statement. “But these economies also need stronger help from abroad.”
Low-income economies borrowed heavily during the Covid-19 pandemic, causing primary deficits to triple, the Bank said, adding that many countries had been unable to “fully unwind”…
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