The 26 poorest countries in the world are more indebted than they have been since 2006. That’s according to a new World Bank report released on Sunday.
Accordingly, the affected economies are around 40 percent of the world’s poorest people Live, on average, poorer today than before Corona-Pandemic while the rest of the world has largely recovered. The study confirms a serious setback in the fight against extreme poverty.
The 26 poorest economies examined with an annual per capita income of less than $1,145 (1,046.81 euros) are increasingly reliant on grants and almost interest-free loans as market financing has largely dried up, according to the World Bank.
Debt crisis and natural disasters
The average debt-to-GDP ratio is 72 percent, the highest it has been in 18 years, and half the group is in either one Debt crisis or is threatened by it.
Also Natural disasters have hit these countries harder over the past decade, the report shows. Between 2011 and 2023, natural disasters caused annual losses of an average of two percent of GDP, five times higher than the average for lower-middle-income countries and underscoring the need for significantly greater investment.