Sudan has the highest ratio of public debt to the economy among Arab countries by the end of 2024, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
According to IMF’s April 2025 Report, Sudan has the highest ratio of public debt to the economy among Arab countries with 272%. Lebanon follows with 164.1%, Bahrain with 134%, Jordan with 95.9%, Egypt with 90.9%, Tunisia with 83.1%, Yemen with 70.9%, Morocco with 70%, Algeria with 46.2%, Mauritania with 44.9%, Iraq with 42.9%, Qatar with 40.8%, Oman with 35.5%, the UAE with 32.1%, Saudi Arabia with 29.9%, and Kuwait with 3%.
As of end-2023, Sudan’s external debt stood at approximately USD22.6 billion, slightly up from USD22.4 billion in 2022. This is relative to its Gross National Income (GNI), that debt equals about 44%. When considering government debt in full, including domestic and foreign obligations, estimates show public debt at an astonishing 272% of GDP, making Sudan the most heavily indebted nations globally. As of June 2021, Sudan was officially eligible for debt relief under the IMF/World Bank’s HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) initiative.
Sudan has long been politically and economically unstable. In recent years, Sudan has faced further instability. Since 2019, Sudan has faced ongoing instability following the ousting of longtime dictator Omar Al Bashir after mass protests. Hopes for a democratic transition were dashed when a military coup in 2021, led by de facto leader General Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, disrupted the civilian-led government. Tensions between Sudan’s two main military factions, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), led by Al Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), erupted into full-scale war in April 2023. The conflict has devastated the country, displacing at least 12 million people, killing at least 150,000 people, damaging homes and infrastructure, and collapsing essential services, making it the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
For more information, visit imf.org/external/datamapper/profile/SDN or imf.org/en/Countries/SDN.
