Mali to pay off $332 mln of internal debt, says minister

BAMAKO, Oct 20 (Reuters) – Mali will pay off 200 billion CFA francs ($332 million) of its internal debt from next week until the end of the year in a bid to ease its debt burden, its economy minister said on state television.

The junta-led West African nation’s economy has been rocked by two coups in 2020-2021 and consequent regional sanctions, as well as years of armed conflict with Islamist militants.

Economy Minister Alousseni Sanou acknowledged the “increasing challenges we face” as he announced the debt repayment. He did not give an overall figure for the size of Mali’s internal debt when he spoke to the broadcaster on Friday.

Last year, the International Monetary Fund warned that “the direction and pace of debt accumulation (in Mali) are worrisome.”

The Fund said Mali’s domestic debt had risen from a low base of 8.1% of gross domestic product in 2015 to 22.1% as of 2021.

($1 = 601.7500 CFA francs) (Reporting by Tiemoko Diallo Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Ros Russell)

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