Côte d’Ivoire vs South Africa: Government debt

Government debt: 57.2% of GDP in Côte d’Ivoire in 2025 and 76% of GDP in South Africa in 2024, by IMF estimates. In 2024 the value was higher in South Africa, by 16.5 percentage points, or 1.28 times that in Côte d’Ivoire.

Watch it change on the map

% of GDP · IMF

Côte d’IvoireSouth AfricaIMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026)

What the numbers say

South Africa has been higher since 2012, when it overtook Côte d’Ivoire.
The IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) puts Côte d’Ivoire at 50.9% of GDP and South Africa at 79.8% of GDP in 2031.

Every year

% of GDP · IMF

Year	Côte d’Ivoire	South Africa
2025	57.2	78.4
2024	59.5	76
2023	56.7	73.2
2022	56	70.7
2021	50.2	68.8
2020	46.3	68.9
2019	37.2	56.1
2018	35.3	51.5
2017	32.6	48.6
2016	31.1	47.1
2015	29.2	45.2
2014	26.7	43.3
2013	24.6	40.4
2012	24.7	37.4
2011	50	34.7
2010	45.6	31.2
2009	46.5	27
2008	51.2	24.1
2007	53.5	24.3
2006	57.5	28
2005	58.2	29.6
2004	56.7	30.7
2003	56.4	31.5
2002	63	31.8
2001	71.2	38.1
2000	74	37.9
1999	78	–
1998	75.2	–
1997	84.2	–

12.3Projected

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

Year	Côte d’Ivoire	South Africa
2026	57.8	78
2027	56.9	78.1
2028	55.3	78.8
2029	53.7	79.5
2030	52.2	79.7
2031	50.9	79.8

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

Côte d’Ivoire vs South Africa

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Conflict

Deaths in conflictsCôte d’Ivoire: 0 deaths in 2022South Africa: 0 deaths in 2022