WINDHOEK, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Namibia's central government debt rose to 164 billion Namibian dollars (about 8.8 billion U.S. dollars) by the end of December 2024, marking a 10.2 percent increase from the start of the 2024/25 fiscal year, the Bank of Namibia has released.

The latest quarterly bulletin, released on the central bank's website on Monday, said that the increase was driven by domestic borrowing through treasury bills and bonds, while foreign debt also rose due to currency depreciation.

According to the report, domestic debt increased by 13.1 percent year-on-year to 126.1 billion Namibian dollars, accounting for 50.2 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP).

External debt rose by 1.5 percent to 37.9 billion Namibian dollars, mainly due to the weaker Namibian dollar, the report said, adding that the government's total debt as a share of GDP stood at 65.3 percent, up from 63.9 percent a year earlier.

The report said that debt servicing costs rose 14.2 percent year-on-year to 3.8 billion Namibian dollars, largely due to repayments on loans from the International Monetary Fund. However, total debt service fell 9.6 percent from the previous quarter, following the redemption of a domestic bond.

Multilateral loans remained the largest portion of Namibia's external debt, accounting for 46.1 percent, despite a decline from the previous year, the report showed.

Eurobond instruments made up 37.2 percent, while bilateral loans increased to 15.9 percent, driven by disbursements from Germany's KfW Development Bank, the report said.

To manage borrowing, the southern African nation has committed to fiscal consolidation, including limiting non-essential spending, improving revenue collection, and prioritizing concessional loans over commercial borrowing to reduce debt servicing costs. Enditem

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