Africa’s debt reaches $1.8 trillion as AU cries for global financial reform

The African Union (AU) has warned that this mounting debt poses a threat to long-term growth, social development, and fiscal stability across the continent.

At the G20–Africa High-Level Dialogue on Debt Sustainability, Cost of Capital and Financing Reforms held in Addis Ababa, AU Commission Chairperson Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, represented by Commissioner for Economic, Trade, Tourism, Industry and Mining Francisca Tatchouop Belobe, said the continent’s debt-service payments exceeded $70 billion in 2024 alone, consuming a growing share of public revenues.

“Many African governments are spending more on servicing debt than on investing in human development.

“Approximately 57 percent of Africa’s population lives in countries where debt servicing surpasses social spending,” Youssouf said.

The spiralling debt service costs, he warned, are “diverting scarce resources away from essential sectors like education, healthcare, and infrastructure.”

Youssouf urged the G20 and international lenders to confront what he called a systemic flaw in the global financial architecture.

“It is a system built for a world that should no longer exist, one that measures creditworthiness through biased metrics and perpetuates structural inequality,” he said.

The AU chairperson called for a “new financial compact” that recognises Africa’s shared responsibility in global economic growth and enables fairer access to capital.

“The challenge is not merely to manage debt, but to reimagine the financial system that sustains this imbalance,” he added.

The establishment of the Africa Expert Panel, Youssouf said, “signals a shift from consultation to co-creation, from inclusion to real influence.”

The AU believes that the ongoing high-level dialogue presents a rare opportunity to “challenge long-held assumptions” and craft practical reforms for fairer global finance, ensuring Africa is no longer “a borrower trapped by outdated rules, but a partner shaping a new economic order.”