Kyrgyzstan’s Public Debt Rises by $24 Million in a Month
Kyrgyzstan’s public debt for both external and internal sources amounted to $5,623.14 billion (equivalent to 491,575.3 billion soms) by the end of March 2023. The data was revealed by the Ministry of Finance of Kyrgyzstan. External debt accounts for $4,511.09 billion, while internal debt amount to $1,112.06 billion. Over the period, public debt increased by $24.24 million, with external debt rising by $16.72 million and internal debt increasing by $7.53 million.
The public debt in March 2023 equated to 53.03 percent of GDP. More than half of the external debt, 51 percent, consists of multilateral loans amounting to $2,300.37 billion. Bilateral concessional loans make up 47.8 percent of the external debt that the country owes. The Export-Import Bank of China accounts for 39 percent of the total external debt, amounting to $1,758.32 billion.
Kyrgyzstan had been suffering from a growing public debt for a long time. The increase in public debt has been attributed to factors such as large government infrastructure projects, social spending, subsidizing energy, and weak tax collection. However, the government has been making efforts to restructure and reduce public debt to ensure the country’s financial stability in the long run.
