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Debt Statistics

USER GUIDE

The World Bank Debt Data Team compiles and publishes comprehensive debt statistics through several databases. You can access their data, methodologies, and publications through a variety of resources:

 

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Debt Statistics

The Debt Statistics website is your one-stop-shop for all things related to the World Bank's debt statistics including data, blogs and news, methodologies, and publications. Content is frequently updated, so stop by often for the latest information.

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Browse open data by country and indicators

Search for time-series data using World Bank Open Data. To view a specific indicator online, you can browse the thematic list under External Debt or use the url https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ and the indicator code. For example, https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/DT.DOD.DECT.CD will display a page which provides the total external debt stock for countries, the metadata and sources behind the data, data download options, and related indicators.

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Query and visualize data in DataBank

Access the databases in DataBank to query and analyze time and series data and use the visualization tools to generate, download, and embed tables, charts, and maps.

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Download bulk and archived versions

Download bulk files through the World Bank's data catalog page. In addition, archived versions of the IDS database are available from 1989 and onwards through the Database archives (available at bottom of Annual Publications).

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Access data through the API

Explore debt data through the World Bank's API. Visit our GitHub for several step-by-step guides for beginners in both Python and R.

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Statistical Tables

Browse the online statistical tables to see curated data across countries by topic and indicator, and download formatted tables in Excel and PDF form for printing.

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Learn about methodology

The World Bank debt statistics are compiled and disseminated using the concepts and definitions of the latest international standards. Read the latest guide on Data Sources and Methodology. Learn about the data methodology used to compile these databases. In addition, you can explore the additional data sources often used for comparison.

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Read publications

Browse our annual and quarterly publications, including the latest International Debt Report (IDR) publication and the quarterly Debt Report. This page also features our new initiatives, such as Domestic Debt, and resources to help users better understand debt statistics and the World Bank's work on debt transparency.

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Questions? Contact Us

The World Bank's Debt Statistics are compiled by the Debt Data Team in the World Bank's Development Data Group. If you can't find what you're looking for through this guide or on the FAQ, you can email us for data questions and feedback.



Contact

World Bank Debt Team
1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433
Email