Tunisia's Long-Term External Debt Reaches 75.966 Billion Dinars
The outstanding amount of Tunisia's long-term external debt (LT) reached 75.966 billion dinars (MD) at the end of 2024, with long-term external debt services representing 19% (14.371 billion MD) of the total borrowing, according to the statistical report on external debt published by the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT) on Tuesday.
Key Figures
- The drawdowns on long-term external loans exceeded 6.517 billion MD in 2024, down 9.4% compared to 2023.
- The public administration remains the main beneficiary of these loans, accounting for nearly 80% of the total, or approximately 5.193 billion MD.
- Other institutional sectors mobilized a total amount of around 1.324 billion MD, with 86.8% of the total benefiting non-financial companies (1.149 billion MD), particularly the energy sector with an envelope of 661 million MD.
- External funds for the financial sector amounted to 175 million MD.
Breakdown of External Borrowing
The Central Bank's data also showed a 19.1% decrease in financial drawdowns to 866 million MD (approximately 75% of the total external borrowing), while commercial drawdowns increased by 22% to 458 million MD in 2024.
Dominance of Official Creditors
The BCT noted that long-term external borrowing remains dominated by loans contracted from official creditors, particularly multilateral creditors (77.5% of all long-term external borrowing), including Afreximbank, the World Bank, the African Development Bank, and the European Investment Bank.
Tunisia's Absence from International Financial Markets
It is worth mentioning that Tunisia has abstained from accessing international financial markets to raise funds since 2019 due to constraints on accessing these markets.
Long-Term External Debt Service
The long-term external debt service experienced a significant increase of 22.2% to reach 14.371 billion MD in 2024, with 79.3% of these loans being honored by the public administration.
Principal and Interest
The principal of the long-term external debt recorded a 27.3% increase in 2024 to reach 11.829 billion MD, representing 82% of the total, while interest increased modestly by 3% to 2.542 billion MD.
Net Transfers
Net transfers showed a negative balance in 2024, which widened to -7.855 billion MD, compared to -4.573 billion MD in 2023.
Explanation
The BCT attributed this to the 9.4% decline in drawdowns on external loans combined with the 22.2% increase in long-term external debt service payments, adding that the public administration contributed negatively to the decline in external financing resources, recording a negative balance of 6.209 billion MD, a significant increase compared to 2023 (-2.811 billion MD).
