Iraq vs United Arab Emirates: Government debt

Government debt in 2025: 52.8% of GDP in Iraq and 33.9% of GDP in United Arab Emirates, by IMF estimates. In 2025 the value was higher in Iraq, by 18.9 percentage points, or 1.56 times that in United Arab Emirates.

Watch it change on the map

% of GDP · IMF

IraqUnited Arab EmiratesIMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026)

What the numbers say

Iraq has been higher in every year both have figures for since 2004.
In 2025, Iraq ranked 76 and United Arab Emirates ranked 120 of 149 countries, counting from the highest.
The IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) puts Iraq at 73.3% of GDP and United Arab Emirates at 26.1% of GDP in 2031.

Every year

% of GDP · IMF

Year	Iraq	United Arab Emirates
2025	52.8	33.9
2024	45.7	33.2
2023	42.1	31.9
2022	39	31.5
2021	54.7	35.7
2020	72.5	30.1
2019	41.7	25.8
2018	44.4	20.7
2017	55.9	21.2
2016	60.3	18.6
2015	48.3	15.6
2014	27.6	13.5
2013	32	15.3
2012	34.8	20.2
2011	40.7	20.4
2010	53.5	18.3
2009	87.4	21.1
2008	74.2	8.9
2007	117.1	8.9
2006	143.2	5.1
2005	227.3	4.5
2004	344.3	4.1
2003	–	3.3
2002	–	3.4
2001	–	2.7
2000	–	3.1
1999	–	4.7

IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) · 2026–2031

Year	Iraq	United Arab Emirates
2026	71.1	32.8
2027	65.2	30.8
2028	62.9	29
2029	65.3	27.4
2030	68.7	27
2031	73.3	26.1

Each country on its own

Good to know

What the government owes, as a share of the economy’s yearly output.
Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook, October 2026.
The dashed line is the IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026), a scenario rather than a forecast.
Ranks count the 149 countries with a value in 2025, highest first.

How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time

Iraq vs United Arab Emirates

Health

People

Economy

Education

Politics

Conflict

Deaths in conflictsIraq: 819 deaths in 2022United Arab Emirates: 3 deaths in 2022