Governments around the world owe a record-high $92 trillion in debt, according to a report presented Wednesday by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
Worldwide public debt hit this new peak, as detailed in the UN report “A World of Debt.” Total debt has increased “fivefold since the year 2000, clearly outpacing global GDP, which tripled over the same time,” the report reads.
The report also notes that 48 countries, home to 3.3 billion people, spend more on “debt interest payments than on education or health.”
“3.3 billion people is more than a systemic risk. It is a systemic failure,” Guterres said in a press conference. “Markets may seem [to] not be suffering – yet. But people are.” (RELATED: Study Reveals How China Became The World’s Biggest Loan Shark)
.@antonioguterres tells journalists: Half our world is sinking into a development disaster, fuelled by a crushing debt crisis. That is the main message of the report we are presenting today: A World of Debt. pic.twitter.com/Q6oNZ7o7HT
— UN Spokesperson (@UN_Spokesperson) July 12, 2023
Developing countries owe nearly three-tenths of total debt, with China, India and Brazil accounting for around 70% of that share, according to the report. These countries also have to pay higher interest rates compared to developed countries, the report explains.
There was also an increase of countries facing high levels of debt from 22 in 2011 to 59 in 2022, partly fueled by spending hikes during the COVID-19 pandemic, per the report.
“Today’s report is our most detailed picture yet of this unfolding debt crisis, with a wealth of comparisons and context,” Guterres said. “It also sets out our roadmap to global financial stability – a roadmap already put forward in our Policy Briefs on reforms of the Global Financial Architecture and the [Sustainable Development Goals] Stimulus.”