As the International Monetary Fund (IMF) sounds the alarm over surging global debt, warning that the world’s public debt could soar beyond 100 per cent of GDP by 2029, policymakers in Nigeria face a difficult but urgent task.
This task or even tasks is expected to be around tightening near-term deficits and building fiscal buffers without stifling growth or deepening social hardship.
In its latest Fiscal Monitor Report, released at the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington DC recently, the monetary body projected that global public debt will exceed 100 per cent of global GDP by 2029, the highest level since 1948.
Presenting the report, IMF fiscal affairs director, Vitor Gaspar, revealed that global public debt prospects have worsened significantly since April.
“Global public debt prospects and risks have deteriorated further since our last meetings. We now project that global public debt will rise above 100 per cent of GDP by 2029”, he said.
