Economy · External debt · Republic of the Congo
Republic of the Congo’s external debt fell to $6.7bn in 2024.
$6.7bn
2024
Down $0.14bn from 2023.
Updated 8 Oct 2026
In plain words
$6.7bn
What it is. External debt stocks add up what the Republic of the Congo owes to lenders outside the country, covering government borrowing and borrowing by other residents, repayable in foreign currency, goods or services. The figure comes from the World Bank's International Debt Statistics and is expressed in current US dollars, so movements in exchange rates change the dollar value even when the underlying loans stay the same. Debt owed to domestic lenders sits outside the measure, and the total is not scaled to the size of the economy.
Lower is better. A smaller foreign debt means fewer claims on the dollars the country earns, so a lower figure is the healthier direction. The latest figure is $6.7bn for 2024, down from $6.9bn a year earlier, a fall of 2.1%. Since 2015 the series has ranged from a low of $6.7bn in 2016 to a high of $8.4bn in 2019. The 2024 level therefore sits at the bottom of that range, level with the 2016 low.
Why it matters. Foreign debt has to be serviced in hard currency, so a smaller stock leaves the state more room to spend on public services at home. A stock of $6.7bn, well below the $8.4bn reached in 2019, eases the repayment burden on government finances. Firms and households feel this indirectly, through the government's capacity to pay suppliers and keep borrowing terms manageable.
| Period | External debt · Republic of the Congo |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $6.8bn |
| 2016 | $6.7bn |
| 2017 | $7.3bn |
| 2018 | $7bn |
| 2019 | $8.4bn |
| 2020 | $8.2bn |
| 2021 | $8.2bn |
| 2022 | $7.3bn |
| 2023 | $6.9bn |
| 2024 | $6.7bn |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0) · Licence: CC BY 4.0
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Strata-AF™ Data, External debt, Republic of the Congo, 2024; source World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0), retrieved 8 Oct 2026; https://data.strata-af.com/economy/external-debt/congo
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Methodology
Total external debt stocks, current US dollars (International Debt Statistics). Unit: USD bn.
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (series DT.DOD.DECT.CD), retrieved through the World Bank API and published under CC BY 4.0. Updated annually; the World Bank's own source notes apply.