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The Effect of External Debt on Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa

Author

Listed:
  • Bernardin Senadza

    (Department of Economics, University of Ghana, Ghana)

  • Agbemavor Korsi Fiagbe

    (Department of Economics, University of Cape Coast, Ghana)

  • Peter Quartey

    (Department of Economics, University of Namibia, Namibia)

Abstract

Purpose: This paper examines the effect of external debt on economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in view of an upsurge in the level of external debt in many countries on the continent. Design/methodology/approach: The paper uses annual data for 39 SSA countries from 1990 to 2013 and employs the System Generalised Methods of Moments (GMM) estimation technique. Findings: The paper finds that external debt negatively affects economic growth in SSA. Categorization of countries based on per capita income however does not affect the external debt-growth nexus, neither does there exist a non-linear relationship between external debt and economic growth. Research limitations/implications: The finding of a negative relationship between external debt and growth does not necessarily imply that SSA countries should cut back on foreign borrowing in other to boost growth. Rather, given the huge savings gaps in some of the countries, what governments in SSA must do is to ensure that the foreign loans are invested in projects that would eventually generate enough returns to amortize the debt. Originality/value: Not only does the present paper extend to more recent data but we also apply one of the frontier econometric techniques - the system GMM approach - to unravel the external debt-economic growth dynamics in SSA.

Suggested Citation

  • Bernardin Senadza & Agbemavor Korsi Fiagbe & Peter Quartey, 2017. "The Effect of External Debt on Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa," International Journal of Business and Economic Sciences Applied Research (IJBESAR), Democritus University of Thrace (DUTH), Kavala Campus, Greece, vol. 11(1), pages 61-69, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:tei:journl:v:11:y:2017:i:1:p:61-69
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Matuka, Adelajda & Asafo, Shuffield Seyram, 2018. "External Debt and Economic Growth in Ghana: A Co-integration and a Vector Error Correction Analysis," MPRA Paper 90463, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 04 Nov 2018.
    2. Manamba EPAPHRA & William MESIET, 2021. "The external debt burden and economic growth in Africa: a panel data analysis," Theoretical and Applied Economics, Asociatia Generala a Economistilor din Romania / Editura Economica, vol. 0(2(627), S), pages 175-206, Summer.
    3. Furqan Sikandar & Vasilii Erokhin & Hongshu Wang & Shafiqur Rehman & Anna Ivolga, 2021. "The Impact of Foreign Capital Inflows on Agriculture Development and Poverty Reduction: Panel Data Analysis for Developing Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-22, March.
    4. Agatha Nkem Amadi & Isaac Azubuike Ogbuji & Hope Agbonrofo, 2020. "The Maturity and Repayment Structure of Sovereign Debt: Implications for Development Agenda in Nigeria," Academic Journal of Economic Studies, Faculty of Finance, Banking and Accountancy Bucharest,"Dimitrie Cantemir" Christian University Bucharest, vol. 6(1), pages 115-120, March.
    5. Fisayo Fagbemi & Olufemi Solomon Olatunde, 2019. "Domestic Investment in Africa: Why the Emerging Public Debt Spiral Matters?," The Review of Finance and Banking, Academia de Studii Economice din Bucuresti, Romania / Facultatea de Finante, Asigurari, Banci si Burse de Valori / Catedra de Finante, vol. 11(2), pages 91-101, December.
    6. Sanele Stungwa, 2024. "Is external debt an impediment to the South African economy?," Public Sector Economics, Institute of Public Finance, vol. 48(1), pages 103-124.
    7. Aruna Gounder & Priteshni Chand & Avineel Kumar, 2024. "Government Debt and Foreign Aid: Do They Matter for Economic Growth in Small Island Economies? Empirical Evidence from the Pacific Islands," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(2), pages 8327-8348, June.
    8. Cham, Yaya, 2023. "Inflation and Public Debt Reversals in the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) Economies," MPRA Paper 117027, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Birendra Narayan Shah & Md Iqbal Bhuyan & Rukshana Salam & Kim Sungsik, 2022. "Foreign Aid and Economic Growth in South Asian Countries," Emerging Economy Studies, International Management Institute, vol. 8(1), pages 41-51, May.
    10. Omodero Cordelia Onyinyechi, 2019. "External Debt Financing and Public Capital Investment in Nigeria: A Critical Evaluation," Economics and Business, Sciendo, vol. 33(1), pages 111-126, January.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Economic Growth; External Debt; Debt Burden; System GMM; Sub-Saharan Africa;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F34 - International Economics - - International Finance - - - International Lending and Debt Problems
    • O4 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence

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