World Bank Group · Short-Term Share of External Debt
Short-term external debt by country
How much of what a country owes abroad falls due within a year?
Of the 118 countries compared in 2024, 5 countries shared the lowest reading, 0.00%, and Mauritius had the highest reading, 54.78%. In the middle country the figure was 9.38%. Among the 80 countries measured in every edition since 1970, the middle one moved from 0.01% to 7.92%.
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Part ofMoney & Public Finance
Short-term external debt · 2024
Context statistic
5 countries share the lowest value, 0.00% — no single country is named first.
012024 · values only
Who leads
The three countries at the lowest end of 118 compared, the three at the other end, and the first on each continent.
Lowest in 2024 · shared
5 countries share the lowest reading, 0.00%
No single country is named first: picking one from a shared value would be a choice the data does not make.
02Every measured country
Short-term external debt on a map
Each country is shaded by its value, in five groups holding the same number of countries. Hover a country for its value, or select it to open its profile. Below the map, each continent’s middle country.
Darker is a lower value — the better end.
- 20.48–54.78%
- 11.23–20.44%
- 6.66–11.04%
- 1.82–6.24%
- 0.00–1.79%
- No reading in 2024 (3 measured in an earlier edition)
- Africa
6.24%
the middle country, of 49 measured · 55 members
3 share 0.00%
Mauritius54.78%Lowest and highest reading in Africa.
- Americas
9.44%
the middle country, of 21 measured · 48 members
Guatemala0.63%
Dominica30.49%Lowest and highest reading in Americas.
- Oceania
11.13%
the middle country, of 6 measured · 21 members
Tonga0.00%
Fiji27.22%Lowest and highest reading in Oceania.
- Asia
12.49%
the middle country, of 33 measured · 52 members
Bhutan0.00%
China53.97%Lowest and highest reading in Asia.
- Europe
21.30%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 49 members
Serbia1.92%
Kosovo35.58%Lowest and highest reading in Europe.
- Every region
17 sub-regions, lowest middle country first
- Eastern Africa
4.26%
the middle country, of 16 measured · 19 members
Comoros0.00%Mauritius54.78%Lowest and highest reading in Eastern Africa.
- Middle Africa
4.92%
the middle country, of 8 measured · 9 members
Chad0.88%
Central African Republic12.09%Lowest and highest reading in Middle Africa.
- Western Africa
5.89%
the middle country, of 16 measured · 16 members
2 share 0.00%
Nigeria20.44%Lowest and highest reading in Western Africa.
- Caribbean
8.06%
the middle country, of 7 measured · 24 members
Grenada1.82%Dominica30.49%Lowest and highest reading in Caribbean.
- Central America
9.52%
the middle country, of 6 measured · 8 members
Guatemala0.63%
Honduras12.32%Lowest and highest reading in Central America.
- Southern Asia
10.24%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
Bhutan0.00%
Iran23.67%Lowest and highest reading in Southern Asia.
- South America
10.34%
the middle country, of 8 measured · 12 members
Ecuador1.04%
Argentina20.05%Lowest and highest reading in South America.
- Central Asia
11.70%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Turkmenistan0.93%
Kyrgyzstan13.67%Lowest and highest reading in Central Asia.
- South-eastern Asia
15.38%
the middle country, of 8 measured · 11 members
Timor-Leste0.43%
Thailand36.17%Lowest and highest reading in South-eastern Asia.
- Southern Europe
16.86%
the middle country, of 6 measured · 17 members
Serbia1.92%Kosovo35.58%Lowest and highest reading in Southern Europe.
- Western Asia
18.80%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 19 members
Azerbaijan1.79%
Jordan38.11%Lowest and highest reading in Western Asia.
- Northern Africa
21.51%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 6 members
Morocco11.04%
Tunisia39.37%Lowest and highest reading in Northern Africa.
- Eastern Asia
2 of 8 measured — too few for a middle: China, Mongolia.
Mongolia6.18%China53.97%Lowest and highest reading in Eastern Asia.
- Eastern Europe
3 of 10 measured — too few for a middle: Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine.
Ukraine9.47%
Belarus29.02%Lowest and highest reading in Eastern Europe.
- Melanesia
4 of 5 measured — too few for a middle: Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu.
Papua New Guinea0.94%Fiji27.22%Lowest and highest reading in Melanesia.
- Polynesia
2 of 7 measured — too few for a middle: Samoa, Tonga.
Tonga0.00%
Samoa17.35%Lowest and highest reading in Polynesia.
- Southern Africa
4 of 5 measured — too few for a middle: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, South Africa.
Lesotho0.18%
South Africa26.62%Lowest and highest reading in Southern Africa.
03The whole field at once
The spread
118 countries, one dot each, on one scale — further right is a higher value. Half the countries are above 9.38%; a quarter are above 17.13%, and a quarter below 2.87%. The bar in each row marks that continent’s middle country.
04All 121 ever measured
Every country
In order, lowest value first. No rank or position is shown: too many countries share the same value for an order to mean anything. This is not a world table. International Debt Statistics covers low- and middle-income borrowers only, so high-income countries are absent by design. It describes the mix of a country’s debt, not its size — a small debt that is mostly short-term can sit above a large one that is not, so read it beside external debt stocks.
Showing 25 of 121 countries
Values for 2024. The change column compares 2024 with 2023 only; the sparkline covers the recent editions.
051970–2024 · 55 reference years
Over time
Each point is one reference year from 1970. The Bank restates the series with each release, so the line reads as one consistent series.
- the middle country
- the middle half of countries
- the middle of the 80 countries measured every time
- each continent’s middle country
The same, year by year
| Year | Countries | Middle country | Middle half | Measured every time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 118 | 9.38% | 2.87% – 17.13% | 7.92% |
| 2023 | 119 | 9.43% | 2.99% – 16.04% | 7.90% |
| 2022 | 121 | 9.83% | 3.96% – 17.02% | 7.70% |
| 2021 | 121 | 8.80% | 4.30% – 15.68% | 7.96% |
| 2020 | 121 | 8.73% | 3.91% – 14.76% | 7.52% |
| 2019 | 121 | 8.98% | 3.50% – 16.14% | 7.73% |
| 2018 | 121 | 9.86% | 3.46% – 16.19% | 7.90% |
| 2017 | 121 | 9.65% | 3.78% – 17.06% | 8.04% |
| 2016 | 121 | 9.80% | 3.44% – 17.16% | 8.32% |
| 2015 | 121 | 10.52% | 3.82% – 17.10% | 9.15% |
| 2014 | 119 | 10.48% | 4.14% – 18.45% | 9.55% |
| 2013 | 119 | 10.15% | 4.50% – 19.71% | 9.48% |
| 2012 | 119 | 10.22% | 4.21% – 19.87% | 9.29% |
| 2011 | 119 | 10.14% | 2.85% – 17.75% | 8.89% |
| 2010 | 119 | 10.05% | 4.14% – 17.82% | 8.55% |
| 2009 | 119 | 9.61% | 4.50% – 17.86% | 8.23% |
| 2008 | 119 | 10.86% | 3.76% – 20.40% | 10.31% |
| 2007 | 118 | 11.78% | 5.19% – 20.46% | 11.42% |
| 2006 | 118 | 11.25% | 4.27% – 16.47% | 10.05% |
| 2005 | 116 | 7.97% | 2.41% – 15.05% | 7.41% |
| 2004 | 116 | 8.54% | 2.62% – 15.84% | 7.93% |
| 2003 | 116 | 8.05% | 3.12% – 16.50% | 8.05% |
| 2002 | 116 | 8.86% | 4.13% – 13.69% | 9.09% |
| 2001 | 116 | 8.60% | 4.01% – 15.16% | 8.82% |
| 2000 | 116 | 7.95% | 3.70% – 13.72% | 8.24% |
| 1999 | 116 | 8.73% | 3.71% – 13.34% | 9.57% |
| 1998 | 115 | 7.89% | 3.57% – 15.54% | 8.97% |
| 1997 | 115 | 9.19% | 3.94% – 17.96% | 10.00% |
| 1996 | 115 | 7.16% | 2.90% – 15.16% | 7.60% |
| 1995 | 115 | 6.89% | 3.11% – 13.59% | 7.40% |
| 1994 | 115 | 7.53% | 2.99% – 14.39% | 7.85% |
| 1993 | 113 | 7.56% | 2.61% – 15.21% | 9.39% |
| 1992 | 108 | 8.20% | 2.86% – 16.51% | 8.48% |
| 1991 | 99 | 7.83% | 3.50% – 15.81% | 7.98% |
| 1990 | 98 | 8.50% | 3.83% – 14.91% | 8.17% |
| 1989 | 98 | 8.11% | 3.63% – 13.32% | 7.90% |
| 1988 | 97 | 7.67% | 3.66% – 11.64% | 7.83% |
| 1987 | 97 | 7.14% | 4.12% – 11.15% | 7.15% |
| 1986 | 97 | 7.21% | 4.22% – 12.46% | 7.66% |
| 1985 | 97 | 8.08% | 3.90% – 13.73% | 8.75% |
| 1984 | 96 | 7.40% | 3.60% – 14.16% | 7.63% |
| 1983 | 95 | 8.18% | 3.21% – 14.22% | 8.28% |
| 1982 | 95 | 9.09% | 3.60% – 14.40% | 9.50% |
| 1981 | 95 | 9.10% | 3.72% – 14.27% | 10.07% |
| 1980 | 86 | 11.29% | 5.20% – 17.85% | 11.71% |
| 1979 | 86 | 12.39% | 5.96% – 19.95% | 12.73% |
| 1978 | 86 | 12.54% | 6.22% – 20.16% | 12.54% |
| 1977 | 84 | 12.49% | 4.57% – 21.20% | 13.43% |
| 1976 | 83 | 0.40% | 0.00% – 10.99% | 0.41% |
| 1975 | 83 | 0.19% | 0.00% – 10.93% | 0.24% |
| 1974 | 83 | 0.18% | 0.00% – 10.41% | 0.20% |
| 1973 | 83 | 0.11% | 0.00% – 10.32% | 0.11% |
| 1972 | 83 | 0.18% | 0.00% – 9.88% | 0.21% |
| 1971 | 82 | 0.16% | 0.00% – 9.98% | 0.16% |
| 1970 | 80 | 0.01% | 0.00% – 10.28% | 0.01% |
062023 → 2024
Who rose and fell
The biggest changes in value between the two newest editions — reference years recalculated in one report, not two separate publications. Places are shown second, because they also move when other countries do.
Improved most
before → afterWorsened most
before → after
Somalia22.63% → 41.79%+19.16
Vanuatu11.16% → 22.10%+10.94
Republic of the Congo2.87% → 9.76%+6.89
Tajikistan6.11% → 12.49%+6.37
Laos0.78% → 6.15%+5.37
118 countries were measured in both 2023 and 2024. The field changed from 119 to 118 countries, so a place can move for reasons that have nothing to do with the country itself.
07Across every edition
Short-term external debt in records
The extremes of the statistic. A record reached by more than one country names none of them.
Highest reading on record
88.98%
Short-term debt (% of total external debt)
Lowest reading on record
Reached 474 times by 65 countries — shared, so no holder is named
0.00%
Short-term debt (% of total external debt)
Biggest improvement between editions
−52.24
65.83% → 13.58%
Biggest decline between editions
+84.37
0.00% → 84.37%
Most improved since first measured
−71.56
83.15% → 11.58%
08The measure
About short-term external debt
This is the share of a country’s external debt that falls due within a year. Short-term debt has to be repaid or rolled over quickly, so a high share leaves a borrower exposed if lenders stop lending or interest rates rise.
What the number is: Short-term debt (% of total external debt).
What it does not measure
It describes the mix of a country's external debt, not its size, and it covers low- and middle-income borrowers only.
09Where it fits
Connections
Its part in the Country Index, the statistics whose values line up most closely with it across countries, and others on the same subject.
In the Country Index
Context, with no vote
This statistic is published in full under Money & Public Finance, but does not help decide any Country Index standing.
Moves with
Where short-term external debt is higher, these tend to be higher too.
- Global Innovation IndexWorld Intellectual Property Organization · 81 countries in commonρ 0.63
- Economic Complexity IndexKeyGrowth Lab at Harvard University · 89 countries in commonρ 0.57
- Frontier Technology Readiness IndexUNCTAD · 108 countries in commonρ 0.55
Moves against
Where short-term external debt is higher, these tend to be lower.
- Export Concentration IndexUNCTAD · 117 countries in commonρ −0.47
- Multidimensional Poverty MeasureWorld Bank Group · 90 countries in commonρ −0.44
- Poverty Headcount at National Poverty LinesWorld Bank Group · 97 countries in commonρ −0.41
Rank correlation (ρ, from −1 to 1) across countries, on each statistic’s newest edition, out of 318 statistics sharing at least 80 countries with this one. Two statistics that move together do not cause each other.
10Keep reading
Explore further
The subject
More from World Bank Group
11Questions
Short-term external debt: questions and answers
Which country has the lowest short-term external debt?
5 countries share the lowest reading, 0.00%, among the 118 compared in 2024, so no single country is named.
Which country has the highest short-term external debt?
Mauritius, at 54.78%, among the 118 countries compared in 2024.
How many countries does the Short-Term Share of External Debt cover?
118 in 2024, and 121 at least once across all editions. The number measured varies from 80 to 121 between editions.
What is the world average short-term external debt?
This site does not calculate a world average, which would depend on how countries are weighted. In the middle country of the 118 compared in 2024, the figure was 9.38%.
Is this World Bank Group’s own ranking?
No ranking is shown. World Bank Group publishes values only, and too many countries share the same value for an ordering to mean anything, so none is derived.
How often is the Short-Term Share of External Debt published?
This site holds 55 reference years, 1970–2024, all recalculated in World Bank Group’s 2026 report on one method — not 55 separate publications.
Where does the data come from, and can I download it?
From World Bank Group, under CC BY 4.0. The World Bank’s International Debt Statistics, through its indicator API (DT.DOD.DSTC.ZS), stored to the four decimals the Bank publishes. Every edition is on this site’s Datasets pages as a full table, and downloads as a CSV file with every value unrounded.
12Method
Sources, method and citation
Source
Short-Term Share of External Debt — World Bank Group
The World Bank’s International Debt Statistics, through its indicator API (DT.DOD.DSTC.ZS), stored to the four decimals the Bank publishes.
Newest edition
Report year 2024Data year 2024
Cite the source as: World Bank. International Debt Statistics. Washington, DC: World Bank Group.
Licence: CC BY 4.0, checked 2026-09-26.
How this page reads the numbers
- No rank or position is shown: World Bank Group publishes values only, and too many countries share the same value for an ordering to mean anything.
- Which end is better follows the publisher’s own reading of the measure.
- A country is named at an end only when it holds that value alone. Where several share it, the page says how many and names none first.
- Values are stored exactly as published and trimmed only for display. “The middle country” is the median of the countries measured, not a world average.
The file itself, column by column — where it came from, what each column holds, and every edition as a CSV — is on its dataset page.
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Short-term external debt by country: Short-Term Share of External Debt, data from World Bank Group. https://nationsinquiry.com/statistics/short-term-external-debt