Economy · Southern Africa
South Africa Public Debt
78.9%as of 2026+0.4% vs 2025
General government gross debt as a percentage of GDP. Source: IMF MACRO FINANCIAL. Updated June 29, 2026.
Trend
History
| Period | Public Debt |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 78.9% |
| 2025 | 78.6% |
| 2024 | 76% |
| 2023 | 73.2% |
| 2022 | 70.7% |
| 2021 | 68.8% |
| 2020 | 68.9% |
| 2019 | 56.1% |
| 2018 | 51.5% |
| 2017 | 48.6% |
| 2016 | 47.1% |
| 2015 | 45.2% |
Get this via API
The series above is served by the /v1/data endpoint. With a free key you get JSON for every country and indicator on this site.
curl "https://api.africa-api.com/v1/data?country_code=ZA&metric_key=public_debt_pct_gdp" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $AFRICA_API_KEY"Public Debt across Africa
Rank all 54 ->| Country | Public Debt |
|---|---|
| Nigeria | 32.3% |
| Kenya | 71.6% |
| Egypt | 87% |
| Ghana | 53% |
| Ethiopia | 40.4% |
| Tanzania | 48.7% |
Frequently asked questions
What is South Africa's general government debt as a share of GDP?
South Africa's general government debt as a share of GDP is 78.9% as of 2026, according to IMF MACRO FINANCIAL.
What is the source for this figure?
The figure comes from IMF MACRO FINANCIAL and is republished by the Africa API with the retrieval date shown on this page.
How do I get South Africa Public Debt data via API?
Call GET /v1/data?country_code=ZA&metric_key=public_debt_pct_gdp with a free Africa API key to receive the full time series as JSON.
More South Africa economy data