Interest payments in South Africa
South Africa: Interest payments was 18.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Interest payments in South Africa, 1972–2024
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of revenue.
Analysis
In 2024, interest payments in South Africa stood at 18.2%.
The figure is up 5.4% on the previous year and up 79.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, interest payments in South Africa peaked at 21.7% in 1997 and was at its lowest, 5.8%, in 1975.
That places South Africa 23rd out of 155 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 53 years of available data.
Interest payments in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 7.0% | — |
| 1973 | 7.2% | +2.1% |
| 1974 | 6.0% | -16.0% |
| 1975 | 5.8% | -4.6% |
| 1976 | 7.0% | +21.3% |
| 1977 | 7.3% | +4.7% |
| 1978 | 8.0% | +9.9% |
| 1979 | 8.3% | +3.7% |
| 1980 | 7.7% | -7.1% |
| 1981 | 9.6% | +24.1% |
| 1982 | 10.4% | +8.2% |
| 1983 | 12.1% | +16.4% |
| 1984 | 13.6% | +12.0% |
| 1985 | 13.6% | +0.5% |
| 1986 | 14.7% | +7.8% |
| 1987 | 15.5% | +5.9% |
| 1988 | 15.3% | -1.6% |
| 1989 | 14.7% | -3.7% |
| 1990 | 15.4% | +4.4% |
| 1991 | 16.8% | +9.1% |
| 1992 | 19.9% | +18.8% |
| 1993 | 20.6% | +3.3% |
| 1994 | 20.1% | -2.1% |
| 1995 | 21.6% | +7.0% |
| 1996 | 20.6% | -4.3% |
| 1997 | 21.7% | +5.0% |
| 1998 | 21.4% | -1.3% |
| 1999 | 19.8% | -7.5% |
| 2000 | 19.1% | -3.5% |
| 2001 | 17.0% | -11.2% |
| 2002 | 15.1% | -10.8% |
| 2003 | 13.7% | -9.6% |
| 2004 | 12.3% | -10.3% |
| 2005 | 10.8% | -12.0% |
| 2006 | 9.4% | -12.4% |
| 2007 | 8.3% | -12.3% |
| 2008 | 7.8% | -6.3% |
| 2009 | 8.5% | +9.1% |
| 2010 | 8.9% | +4.7% |
| 2011 | 9.4% | +6.3% |
| 2012 | 9.9% | +5.4% |
| 2013 | 9.9% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 10.1% | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 10.3% | +1.9% |
| 2016 | 11.3% | +9.5% |
| 2017 | 12.1% | +7.3% |
| 2018 | 12.6% | +4.2% |
| 2019 | 13.2% | +4.6% |
| 2020 | 15.5% | +17.4% |
| 2021 | 14.9% | -4.2% |
| 2022 | 15.9% | +6.9% |
| 2023 | 17.3% | +8.4% |
| 2024 | 18.2% | +5.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7.1% | 5.8% | 8.3% | 8 |
| 1980s | 12.7% | 7.7% | 15.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 19.8% | 15.4% | 21.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 12.2% | 7.8% | 19.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.8% | 8.9% | 13.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.3% | 14.9% | 18.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 20 Dominican Republic 19.3% compare
- 21 Gabon 18.9% compare
- 22 Jordan 18.6% compare
- 24 Côte d'Ivoire 18.0% compare
- 25 Philippines 17.3% compare
- 26 Costa Rica 16.6% compare
More public sector data for South Africa
- Arms imports 30.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.4746 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0001 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 30.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 44.31 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0071 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate -1.41 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 2.84 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 24.73 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is interest payments in South Africa?
- Interest payments in South Africa was 18.2% in 2024, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest interest payments recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 21.7% in 1997.
- What is the lowest interest payments recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.8% in 1975.
- How does South Africa rank for interest payments?
- South Africa ranks 23rd out of 155 countries with data for 2024.
- Is interest payments rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 79.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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 revenue). 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 a percentage of revenue which includes all transactions that add to the amount of economic value of a unit or sector.