Dar es Salaam. Ripoti mpya ya Benki ya Dunia imetoa taswira inayohusu nchi zinazoendelea, ikiwa ni pamoja na Tanzania, zinazokabiliana na kuongezeka kwa mzigo wa kulipa madeni.
Kwa mujibu wa ripoti hiyo, Tanzania na nchi zingine walitumia kiasi cha dola bilioni 443.5 kulipia deni la nje mwaka 2022, ikiwa ni ongezeko la asilimia 5 ikilinganishwa na mwaka uliopita.
Mwenendo huu kwa kiasi kikubwa unasukumwa na kupanda kwa viwango vya riba duniani, kubana rasilimali za thamani mbali na sekta muhimu kama vile afya, elimu na mazingira.
Ripoti ya Benki ya Dunia inaangazia jinsi rasilimali za thamani zinavyoelekezwa mbali na sekta muhimu kama vile afya, elimu, na mazingira ili kuhudumia madeni yanayoongezeka.
Kwa viwango vya riba vya kimataifa kuongezeka, mzigo unatarajiwa kuwa mbaya zaidi. Ripoti hiyo inatabiri ongezeko linalowezekana la asilimia 39 la gharama za kulipia deni kwa nchi 24 maskini zaidi kufikia 2024.
Wakati Tanzania, iliyoainishwa kama nchi ya kipato cha kati na Benki ya Dunia, haijajumuishwa moja kwa moja katika makadirio haya, bado iko katika hatari ya kuongezeka kwa gharama. Kama mkopaji anayestahiki kutoka Shirika la Kimataifa la Maendeleo la Benki ya Dunia (IDA), Tanzania haijakingwa na tatizo la madeni duniani.
Mnamo 2022, nchi zinazostahiki IDA, ikiwa ni pamoja na Tanzania, kwa pamoja zilitoa rekodi ya $88.9 bilioni katika malipo ya deni.
"Rekodi za viwango vya deni na viwango vya juu vya riba vimeweka nchi nyingi kwenye njia ya mgogoro," alionya Indermit Gill, Makamu Mkuu wa Rais wa Benki ya Dunia. "Kila robo ambayo viwango vya riba vinabaki juu, nchi nyingi zinazoendelea zinakabiliwa na chaguo gumu la kulipa deni au kuwekeza kwa watu wao."
Bw. Gill alisisitiza hitaji la dharura la uratibu wa hatua za serikali, wadai na taasisi za kimataifa. Alitoa wito wa kuongezeka kwa uwazi, kuboreshwa kwa zana za uhimilivu wa deni, na mipangilio ya haraka ya urekebishaji ili kukabiliana na hali hii tata.
Kuongezeka kwa wimbi la deni la kimataifa sio tu kunaathiri nchi zinazoendelea. Kuongezeka kwa viwango vya riba kumeongeza udhaifu wa madeni katika mataifa yote yanayoendelea, na kusababisha kutofaulu kwa nchi 18 huru katika nchi 10 ndani ya miaka mitatu pekee iliyopita - na kuvuka jumla ya makosa yaliyoshuhudiwa katika miongo miwili iliyopita.
Benki ya Dunia inakadiria kuwa takriban asilimia 60 ya nchi za kipato cha chini kwa sasa ziko katika hatari kubwa ya kukabiliwa na deni au tayari zinakabiliwa na hali hii.
Zaidi ya hayo, gharama za deni zinazoongezeka zinaendana na kupungua kwa chaguzi mpya za ufadhili kwa nchi zinazoendelea.
Mnamo mwaka 2022, ahadi mpya za mikopo ya nje kwa nchi hizi zilishuka kwa asilimia 23 hadi $371 bilioni, kuashiria kiwango cha chini kabisa katika muongo mmoja. Wafadhili wa kibinafsi, haswa, wamejiondoa kwa kiasi kikubwa kutoka kwa masoko yanayoendelea, na hivyo kuzidisha hali hiyo.
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A new World Bank report paints a concerning picture for developing countries, including Tanzania, grappling with escalating debt servicing burdens.
According to the report, Tanzania and its peers spent a staggering $443.5 billion servicing external debt in 2022, a 5 percent increase compared to the previous year.
This trend is largely driven by rising global interest rates, squeezing precious resources away from critical sectors like healthcare, education, and the environment.
The World Bank’s report highlights how precious resources are being diverted away from critical sectors like health, education, and the environment to service mounting debt obligations.
With global interest rates on the rise, the burden is expected to worsen further. The report predicts a potential 39 percent increase in debt-servicing costs for the 24 poorest countries by 2024.
While Tanzania, categorized as a middle-income country by the World Bank, is not directly included in this projection, it remains vulnerable to the escalating costs. As an eligible borrower from the World Bank's International Development Association (IDA), Tanzania is not immune to the global debt crisis.
In 2022, IDA-eligible countries, including Tanzania, collectively disbursed a record $88.9 billion in debt service payments.
"Record debt levels and high interest rates have set many countries on a path to crisis," warned Indermit Gill, World Bank Senior Vice President. "Every quarter that interest rates stay high, more developing countries face the difficult choice of servicing debt or investing in their people."
Mr. Gill emphasized the urgent need for coordinated action by governments, creditors, and multilateral institutions.
He called for increased transparency, improved debt sustainability tools, and faster restructuring arrangements to navigate this complex situation.
The rising global debt wave is not only impacting developing countries. Surging interest rates have heightened debt vulnerabilities across all developing nations, leading to 18 sovereign defaults in 10 countries within the past three years alone – surpassing the total defaults witnessed in the previous two decades.
The World Bank estimates that approximately 60 percent of low-income countries are currently at high risk of debt distress or already in it.
Furthermore, the escalating debt costs are coinciding with a decline in new financing options for developing countries.
In 2022, new external loan commitments to these countries dropped by 23 percent to $371 billion, marking the lowest level in a decade. Private creditors, in particular, have largely withdrawn from developing markets, further exacerbating the situation
Source: The Citizen Tanzania