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The countries most in debt to China, and why they're struggling to pay back their loans

China's biggest borrowers
Belarus: $11 billion (£9bn) total debt
Turkmenistan: $12.2 billion (£10bn) total debt
Kenya: $12.7 billion (£10.2bn) total debt
Democratic Republic of Congo: $13.1 billion (£10.5bn) total debt
Zambia: $13.5 billion (£11bn) total debt
Myanmar: $13.7 billion (£11bn) total debt
Nigeria: $14.5 billion (£11.7bn) total debt
Egypt: $15 billion (£12bn) total debt
Malaysia: $15.9 billion (£12.8bn) total debt
Cambodia: $16.3 billion (£13.1bn) total debt
Peru: $16.9 billion (£13.6bn) total debt
Sudan: $18 billion (£14.3bn) total debt
Uzbekistan, $18 billion (£14.3bn) total debt
Sri Lanka: $19.5 billion (£15.5bn) total debt
Bangladesh: $20 billion (£16bn) total debt
Ethiopia: $20.4 billion (£16.3bn) total debt
Laos: $20.6 billion (£16.4bn) total debt
South Africa: $21.3 billion (£17bn) total debt
Ecuador: $26.3 billion (£21bn) total debt
Iran: $28 billion (£22.3bn) total debt
Türkiye: $28.3 billion (£22.5bn) total debt
Vietnam: $28.8 billion (£23bn) total debt
Argentina: $37.7 billion (£30bn) total debt
Brazil: $54.3 billion (£43bn) total debt
Indonesia: $55 billion (£46bn) total debt
Kazakhstan: $64.2 billion (£51bn) total debt
Angola: $64.8 billion (£52 billion) total debt
Pakistan: $68.9 billion (£55bn) total debt
Venezuela: $112.8 billion (£90bn) total debt
Russia, $169.3 billion (£134bn) total debt
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China's biggest borrowers

In 2013, China’s President Xi Jinping launched the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Originally set to be a massive programme of investments in infrastructure development that would ultimately link Asia to Europe, the plan later expanded around the globe, particularly in developing countries.

A decade on, China is now the world’s largest official debt collector – and the number of overdue payments it's owed is soaring at a time when Beijing is grappling with its own financial issues. Research organisation AidData estimates that as much as 80% of China’s overseas lending portfolio currently supports countries in financial distress, with the total it's owed reaching more than $1 trillion (£790bn).

Read on to discover the 30 countries most heavily in debt to China and find out who’s struggling to make payments. Debt figures are via AidData and account for total debt from 2000 to 2021. All dollar amounts in US dollars.

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Nicole Robinson

20 September 2024

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