2. How big is the debt of poor countries?

The poorest 49 countries have debts totalling between 290 and 375 billion US dollars, whilst for the poorest 144 countries, it is over 2.9 trillion US dollars.

The total external debt of the very poorest countries (the 'low income countries' which have an annual average income of less than $935 per person) was US $375 billion in 2006. During 2006, these countries paid over $34 billion to the rich world in debt service (payments of interest and principal) – that is $94 million a day.

For all ‘developing’ countries, total external debt owed in 2006 was $2.9 trillion, and over the course of that year they paid $573 billion servicing these debts.

These are the latest figures available - there has been some debt cancellation in 2007 and 2008, but there also have been new debts taken on. The overall figures are unlikely to have changed hugely.

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