In 2006, the first eurobond was issued in sub-Saharan Africa. Between then and 2016, eurobond debt has grown among more than a dozen African countries, reaching in excess of US$23 billion.

This carries an average annual coupon payment of roughly US$1.7 billion, on which nearly half of the affected countries are either close to defaulting or actively seeking ways to refinance the bonds, according to Quartz Africa.

In January this year, Mozambique defaulted on a US$60 million coupon payment, off a restructured US$850 million bond initially issued in 2013. Meanwhile, Zambia issued three eurobonds totalling US$3 billion between 2012 and 2015 , and has been seeking a US$1.6 billion IMF bailout package since late last year.

Furthermore, a Euromoney report shows a 2017 debt-to-GDP ratio forecast for Mozambique of 106.9% – sub-Saharan Africa’s highest – followed by Ghana (71.1%), Gabon (62%), Angola (61.3%) and Zambia (57.7%).

14 November 2017
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