Data compiled by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, has it that Ghana emerges as the most indebted to China among 15 African nations.
The data reveals that Ghana’s total loans from China, following the completion of the HIPC Initiative, amount to $31.1 billion, constituting the entirety of the country’s Chinese loans.
Guinea follows with $21.9 billion, Ethiopia with $14.8 billion, and Tanzania with $12.6 billion.
Economist Theophilus Acheampong expressed astonishment at Ghana topping the list, drawing parallels to the debt challenges faced by nations in the 1970s that led to interventions like HIPC.
He wrote on X: “Very interesting visual. I thought Ethiopia would have taken more Chinese loans than Ghana. Data comes from the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission. According to the Commission, 60% of China’s debtor nations were in financial distress in 2022, up from 5% in 2010. But how is this any different from the debt distress of the 1970s, late 90s to early 2000s, which led to the likes of HIPC/MDRI? Same game, just different players!”