Interest payments in Tunisia
Tunisia: Interest payments was 5.1% in 2012. ▲ Rising
Interest payments in Tunisia, 1972–2012
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
Tunisia recorded 5.1% for interest payments in 2012.
The figure is down 4.5% on the previous year and down 52.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, interest payments in Tunisia peaked at 14.1% in 1996 and was at its lowest, 3.7%, in 1977.
That places Tunisia 90th out of 152 countries with data for 2012, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 41 years of available data.
Interest payments in Tunisia, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 6.0% | — |
| 1973 | 5.3% | -11.2% |
| 1974 | 5.0% | -4.9% |
| 1975 | 3.8% | -24.0% |
| 1976 | 3.9% | +1.0% |
| 1977 | 3.7% | -4.7% |
| 1978 | 4.4% | +20.5% |
| 1979 | 5.8% | +30.9% |
| 1980 | 5.4% | -6.9% |
| 1981 | 5.9% | +8.9% |
| 1982 | 6.5% | +10.7% |
| 1983 | 6.8% | +4.3% |
| 1984 | 7.9% | +15.8% |
| 1985 | 8.9% | +12.8% |
| 1986 | 9.7% | +9.3% |
| 1987 | 10.9% | +12.3% |
| 1988 | 10.4% | -4.4% |
| 1989 | 10.4% | -0.5% |
| 1990 | 10.9% | +5.3% |
| 1991 | 11.4% | +4.8% |
| 1992 | 11.5% | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 12.3% | +6.5% |
| 1994 | 12.5% | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 13.1% | +5.2% |
| 1996 | 14.1% | +7.6% |
| 1997 | 13.7% | -3.2% |
| 1998 | 12.4% | -9.0% |
| 1999 | 12.4% | -0.8% |
| 2000 | 12.1% | -2.4% |
| 2001 | 11.2% | -6.9% |
| 2002 | 10.8% | -3.5% |
| 2003 | 10.1% | -7.0% |
| 2004 | 9.9% | -2.0% |
| 2005 | 9.7% | -1.8% |
| 2006 | 9.6% | -1.5% |
| 2007 | 9.1% | -5.2% |
| 2008 | 7.6% | -16.5% |
| 2009 | 7.2% | -4.7% |
| 2010 | 6.5% | -9.7% |
| 2011 | 5.3% | -18.0% |
| 2012 | 5.1% | -4.5% |
Tunisia compared with similar countries
- Tunisia's 5.1% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 10.0%, 51% of the median. (36 countries reporting)
- Tunisia's 5.1% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 4.3%, 1.2× the median. (14 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.7% | 3.7% | 6.0% | 8 |
| 1980s | 8.3% | 5.4% | 10.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 12.4% | 10.9% | 14.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.7% | 7.2% | 12.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.7% | 5.1% | 6.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Tunisia
More public sector data for Tunisia
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Democracy 1 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 1 (2025)
- Elected parliament 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is interest payments in Tunisia?
- Interest payments in Tunisia was 5.1% in 2012, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest interest payments recorded in Tunisia?
- The highest recorded value was 14.1% in 1996.
- What is the lowest interest payments recorded in Tunisia?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.7% in 1977.
- How does Tunisia rank for interest payments?
- Tunisia ranks 90th out of 152 countries with data for 2012.
- Is interest payments rising or falling in Tunisia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 52.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Tunisia data come from?
- The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Interest payments (% of expense). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Interest payments include interest payments on government debt (including long-term bonds, long-term loans, and other debt instruments) to domestic and foreign residents. This indicator is expressed as percentage of total expenses which is any decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction.