Nine African countries, including Nigeria and South Africa, had no outstanding loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as of June 2026, according to the latest IMF Outstanding Credit Data.
The data showed that while some countries had fully repaid previous borrowings from the Bretton Woods institution, others have never accessed its credit facilities.
Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, cleared its obligations after repaying about $3.4 billion borrowed under the IMF’s emergency financing programme introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Similarly, South Africa has fully settled its debt, repaying approximately $4.3 billion it had accessed to cushion the economic impact of the pandemic.
Algeria also featured on the list, having completely prepaid all its IMF loans in 2005, while Mozambique repaid $701 million to exit the Fund’s list of debtor nations.
Namibia and Eswatini were also listed among countries with zero outstanding IMF loans, with Namibia repaying $23.9 million and Eswatini fully settling its obligations.
Three countries—Botswana, Libya and Eritrea—stand out for never having borrowed from the IMF.
The IMF data highlights varying approaches by African nations to external financing, with some countries relying on domestic resources or alternative funding sources, while others continue to access IMF facilities to support economic reforms, balance-of-payments needs and fiscal stability.
According to the IMF’s Outstanding Credit Data for May 2026, the nine African countries with zero outstanding IMF loans are South Africa, Algeria, Nigeria, Mozambique, Namibia, Eswatini, Botswana, Libya and Eritrea.
