Top 10 African Countries with Highest Interest Rates on Sovereign Bonds 2025

In Summary:

• The interest bill on public external debts in sub-Saharan Africa has increased to about $20 billion in 2025 alone.
• The interest to be paid on the public external debt in sub-Saharan Africa in 2025 amounts to 3.4% of the total GDP between 2025 and 2027 of the region combined.
• Sub-Saharan African nations dominate 90% of the top 10 countries offering the highest 10-year sovereign bond yields in 2025.

Deep Dive!!

Debt servicing is becoming an increasing issue for African countries, with reports confirming that the continent has a debt burden of approximately $100 billion from the IMF and World Bank. To service these debts, sub-Saharan African nations are projected to pay about $20 billion in debt interest in 2025 alone.

To address the situation, many African governments are turning to sovereign bonds to raise investments. Sovereign bonds are classified as debt securities issued directly by governments to raise funds for capital projects and external debt management. It involves investors lending money to the government for a high Return on investment (ROI) after a predefined tenure. Here are the top African countries that offer the highest interest on 10-year sovereign bonds in 2025, according to data from official reports from Trading Economics.

10. Gambia

The government of Gambia pegged the interest rate on its sovereign bond at 17% and has maintained an average of 17.42% since 2002. However, according to previous reports, the country reached an all-time high of 34.00% around September 2003 and hit a record low of around 10.00% in May 2020.

9. Liberia

Also maintaining a benchmark interest rate of 17% for its government-issued sovereign bonds, Liberia has maintained an average interest rate of 19.12% since 2019. The country reached an all-time high of 30.00% in November 2019 after recording its lowest percentage of 4.00% in the same year. Prospective investors will be expecting the same trajectory in subsequent years.

8. Angola

The government of Angola, through the National Bank of Angola, placed its interest on government-issued sovereign bonds at 19.5% during its just concluded March 2025 general meeting. Reports also revealed that the country’s central bank reduced the liquidity absorption rate of investors by 100bps to 17.5% and relaxed the reserve requirement ratio for commercial banks by 100bps to 20%.

7. Sierra Leone

The government of Sierra Leone benchmarked its interest rate at 24.75% and has maintained an average rate of 19.02% from 2000 to 2025. Reports indicate that the country reached an all-time high of 27.00% in October 2000 but slumped to its lowest interest rate of 9.50% in March 2015.

6. Congo

The government of Congo is offering a lucrative 25% to prospective investors with interests in its sovereign bonds. The country has recorded an average interest rate of 17.01% since 2008 to date, reaching an alarming all-time high of 70.00% in January 2010 and a record low of 2% just 3 years later in November 2013.

5. Egypt

Registering as the only non-sub-Saharan African country in the top ten list, Egypt pegged its interest rate on sovereign bond yield at 25.50% after its April 2025 general meeting. The government says the move is in line with its initiatives to anchor inflation expectations, as annual headline inflation decelerated to 13.6% in March 2025, while core inflation fell to 9.4%. The government is aiming to steer inflation towards its 7% ± 2 p.p. target by the end of 2026.

4. Malawi

After a crucial meeting with stakeholders, the government of Malawi has reached an agreement to benchmark its interest rate at 26%. The country has recorded an average interest rate of 23.07% from 2001 to date, reaching an all-time high of an alarming 75.53% in February 2001 and reaching a boiling point of 12% in November 2020.

3. Nigeria

Africa’s population giant, Nigeria, through its central bank, unanimously maintained its interest rate on sovereign bond benchmark at 27.50% after a 20 February 2025 meeting. The decision follows the country’s resolve to mitigate its headline inflation, which dropped to 24.48% this year. Since early 2024, the Central Bank of Nigeria has increased its resolve to stabilize the Naira. 

2. Ghana

After a March 2025 meeting, the government of Ghana agreed to a sovereign bond interest rate of 28%, and although stakeholders initially challenged the decision and called for subsequent meetings, the rate remained unchanged. The central bank, in its defence, claimed that the decision was driven by concerns about the country’s inflation outlook. Ghana's annual consumer inflation eased for the second month to 23.1% early this year, though staying well above the Bank of Ghana’s 8% target range.

1.     Zimbabwe

In the past, Zimbabwe has often made the news for its poor economic and monetary policies. It is only a matter of time before we know the real implications of its interest rates on sovereign bonds sitting at 35%, and currently the highest on the continent. According to reports, Zimbabwe's monthly consumer inflation climbed to 10.5% in January 2025, as the country’s economic woes persist with tight liquidity, high inflation, and foreign currency shortages despite the launch of the gold-backed ZIG currency last year.