Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Casimir Kpedjo
Published on 2024-03-19 14:47:18
With an outstanding public debt estimated at 6,508.52 billion CFA francs at the end of December 2023, Benin has repaid (excluding arrears and outstanding loans retroceded to public enterprises) 714.63 billion CFA francs by this deadline, according to the General Directorate of the Autonomous Debt Management Fund (Cagd).
In foreign currency, the public debt service as of December 31, 2023 amounts to 260.24 billion CFA for 454.39 billion CFA in local currency, that is, in the CFA franc (Xof). In other words, Benin has repaid 260.24 billion CFA of its foreign debt and 454.39 billion CFA domestically for the year 2023. These repayments involve multilateral, bilateral, and commercial lenders for external debt.
These lenders received 66.87 billion, 42.09 billion, and 151.28 billion CFA francs respectively for the period under review; the repayment also involved Public Bonds and local Banks. These lenders received 415.70 billion and 38.69 billion CFA francs on December 31, 2023. The analysis of Table 6 of the Cagd document shows that the public debt service as of December 31, 2023 amounts to 524.40 billion CFA as Principal and 190.23 billion CFA as cumulative interest and commissions.
Thus, the total external debt repaid in Principal is 157.55 billion CFA francs, while this total is 366.85 billion CFA francs for domestic debt. As for the accumulated interest and commissions, the table shows 102.69 billion CFA for external debt and 87.54 billion CFA for the repayment of domestic debt.
Looking at these values, it is clear that the country’s public debt is crucial, and the remarks made by the French Treasury are relevant. “Benin manages its public debt dynamically with the objective of extending its maturity and reducing its cost, continuously carrying out refinancing and arbitrage operations that favor long-term external debt instead of short and expensive internal debt.” These are the kind words from France to the authorities of Benin.
In an analysis of the “Economic and Financial Situation” of Benin published on July 18, 2023 by the General Directorate of its Treasury, France not only praises Benin’s dynamism in borrowing but also applauds its debt service, which, for the fiscal year 2023, repaid 823.82 billion CFA francs, including 633.59 billion CFA in principal repayment and 190.23 billion CFA in debt servicing expenses. For 2024, the Autonomous Debt Management Fund (Cagd) foresees 680 billion CFA francs in repayment, including principal and coupon.
Moreover, the French Treasury views Benin as a “country at moderate risk of debt sustainability, according to the IMF, who did not wish to benefit from the G20 initiative to suspend the maturities of bilateral public debt service.”
Read the original article(French) on Benin Web TV
