Pakistan’s total external debt reached close to $130 billion in 2024, with debt servicing absorbing 40% of export earnings, the World Bank said in its International Debt Report 2025. The Bank reported that Pakistan’s external position weakened during the year as net foreign inflows fell sharply to $354 million, a decline of more than tenfold from 2023.
China remained Pakistan’s largest bilateral creditor, holding 23% of its public external debt. The Bank noted that Bangladesh, Nigeria and Pakistan together accounted for nearly 30% of the debt stock of IDA-eligible countries, while Mozambique, Senegal, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan represented another 21%.
The report added net debt flows to the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan region shifted from an inflow of $11.9 billion in 2023 to an outflow of $4.1 billion in 2024. Most of the reversal came from Egypt, where net flows moved from a $5.2 billion inflow to a $3.4 billion outflow, followed by Pakistan’s drop to $354.4 million.
Pakistan was also among the countries with the highest debt service-to-export ratios in 2024, alongside Haiti, Laos, Mozambique, Papua New Guinea and Senegal.
The Bank said net flows from bilateral creditors turned negative for the first time since 2011, driven largely by reduced disbursements to Pakistan and Iraq. Bilateral financing to Pakistan dropped by more than 75% to $1.5 billion.
Multilateral lenders were the only group providing positive net flows to public sector borrowers. The Bank said most of the regional increase came from World Bank IBRD lending, with Pakistan among the largest recipients due to its 2024 IMF disbursement. These inflows were offset by Egypt’s higher repayments to the IMF.
The report said Pakistan’s total external debt stock stood at $129.718 billion in 2024, including IMF credit and SDR allocations of $12.321 billion, compared with $11.532 billion in 2023. Long-term external debt amounted to $107.88 billion in 2024, slightly lower than $110.548 billion the previous year.
Of Pakistan’s public and publicly guaranteed external debt, 49% was owed to multilateral creditors—18% to the World Bank, 16% to the Asian Development Bank and 15% to other multilaterals. Bilateral lenders accounted for 43% of the stock, including 23% held by China and 5% by Saudi Arabia. Private creditors held the remaining 8%, including bondholders and multiple lenders.
