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Angola turns to local markets as debt costs swallow nearly half of 2026 budget

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Angola plans to spend almost half of its 2026 budget on debt payments, underscoring how rising servicing costs are squeezing fiscal space across Africa and forcing governments to rely more on domestic markets for funding.

The Finance Ministry’s draft budget released on Friday showed that 32.9% of total expenditure, $11.95 billion, will be directed toward loan repayments, while 13%, or $4.6 billion, will cover interest payments. Together, debt servicing will absorb about 45.9% of total expenditure.

 

Angola anticipates net borrowing of $7.7 billion from local sources compared to $1.8 billion from external creditors in 2026, reflecting a broader trend among frontier markets to rely on domestic financing as access to foreign currency is often more pricey and risky.

 

Luanda’s budget deficit is seen at 2.8% of gross domestic product, down from an estimated 3.3% in 2025.

 

Sub-Saharan Africa’s second-biggest crude oil producer, which seeks to contain costs due to volatile oil prices, said it would cut total expenditure by 4.7% to $36 billion. Its draft budget assumes a crude oil price of $61 per barrel, while Brent crude futures were trading near $65 on Friday.

 

Economic growth is expected to accelerate to 4.2% in 2026, up from 3% in 2025.

 

–Reuters–