At the end of 2018, Guyana’s public debt had increased by 1.5 per cent, a figure representing 43.9 per cent of the country’s GDP, with a significant portion (33.9 per cent) comprising external debt.
According to the Annual Report of the Bank of Guyana, the increase in the external debt stock— 5.5 per cent more than in 2017— reflected higher disbursements received mainly from the Inter-national Development Association (IDA) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) for project financing.
The total external debt at the end of 2018 was US$1,309 million, with disbursements for projects targeting citizen security strengthening, sanitation improvement, economic diversification, education sector improvement and financial and fiscal stability.
