Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
On November 18, 2023, the Government of Ethiopia announced that it reached an agreement with the China Eximbank to suspended its debt payment obligations until July 4, 2024. An IMF report reveals that the principal suspension retroactively applied to all debts that were due on January 1, 2023. This debt suspension was expected to provide relief to the Government of Ethiopia after economic hardship in the country was accelerated by a civil war (2020-2022).
Staff comments
1. Neither the Government of Ethiopia nor the IMF revealed the exact Chinese institution that participated in the debt rescheduling. However, an IMF report points out that China participated in Ethiopia's Official Creditors' Committee (OCC). Commonly, China Eximbank represents China in these committee discussions. In addition, according to Ethiopian government sources, MOFCOM loans continued to be repaid in 2023 and 2024. Hence, AidData assumes China Eximbank participated in the debt rescheduling. This issue warrants more investigation. See the IMF report at https://www.mofed.gov.et/media/filer_public/da/15/da150f60-a08c-440d-832c-111410cc1f85/public_sector_debt_statistical_bulletin_no_51-final12.pdf