Humans not only take debts to manage necessities. A country may also take debt to manage its economy. For example, infrastructure spending is one costly ingredient required for a country's citizens to lead comfortable lives. The World Bank is the organization that provides debt to countries.
In this project, you are going to analyze international debt data collected by The World Bank. The dataset contains information about the amount of debt (in USD) owed by developing countries across several categories. You are going to find the answers to the following questions:
- What is the number of distinct countries present in the database?
- What country has the highest amount of debt?
- What country has the lowest amount of repayments?
- Identify key trends in international debt among developing countries.
- Understand the composition of debt by different indicators.
- Analyze the burden of interest payments and its implications.
- Explore relationships between debt types and their impact on national economies.
Below is a description of the table you will be working with:
international_debt table
international_debt table| Column | Definition | Data Type |
|---|---|---|
| country_name | Name of the country | varchar |
| country_code | Code representing the country | varchar |
| indicator_name | Description of the debt indicator | varchar |
| indicator_code | Code representing the debt indicator | varchar |
| debt | Value of the debt indicator for the given country (in current US dollars) | float |
Introduction:
The international debt landscape is crucial for understanding economic stability, especially in developing countries. The World Bank provides extensive data on the debt owed by these nations across various categories. This project aims to analyze this data to uncover insights that can inform economic strategies and policy-making. By leveraging SQL analysis and data visualization techniques, we will seek to address critical questions about the nature of international debt.
1 hidden cell
-- num_distinct_countries
-- Write your query here...
Select Count(distinct(country_name)) As num_distinct_countries
from international_debt;Total Debt by Country
Identifying the countries with the highest debt levels, indicating potential economic vulnerabilities.
-- highest_debt_country
-- Write your query here...
select country_name, sum(debt) as total_debt
From international_debt
group by country_name
order by total_debt desc
limit 1;Total Debt Concentration
- China and Brazil hold the largest debt figures, with totals of
- South Asia follows with $247.6 billion, showing a regional debt burden likely due to shared economic conditions and financing needs.
- The UN-classified Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Russian Federation also reflect high debt levels at
-- highest_debt_countries
-- Write your query here...
select country_name, sum(debt) as total_debt
From international_debt
group by country_name
order by total_debt desc
limit 20;Distribution of Debt by Indicator
The analysis of debt by indicator reveals significant variances in the types of debt incurred by countries:
Principal repayments on external debt (long-term) account for a substantial portion of the debt across various countries.
Interest payments represent another critical component, especially in nations like Albania, which reported $165,602,386.9 in interest payments on long-term external debt.
Debt Distribution by Type:
Long-Term Principal Repayments: Reflects future obligations and financial commitments.
Interest Payments: Indicates the cost of borrowing and affects future fiscal space.
Conclusion:
Nations need to balance between principal repayments and interest obligations to ensure sustainable debt levels.
SELECT indicator_name, SUM(debt) AS total_debt
FROM international_debt
GROUP BY indicator_name
ORDER BY total_debt DESC;
Debt Repayment Analysis
Timor-Leste recorded the lowest principal repayment total of $1,867,000, highlighting its comparatively manageable debt obligations.
Lowest Principal Repayment Country:
Country: Timor-Leste Total Repayment: $1,867,000 Conclusion: This could signal a more sustainable debt profile for Timor-Leste, but it may also reflect a need for increased investment and growth opportunities
-- lowest_principal_repayment
-- Write your query here...
SELECT country_name,
SUM(debt) AS total_repayment
FROM international_debt
WHERE indicator_name IN (
'Principal repayments on external debt, private nonguaranteed (PNG) (AMT, current US$)',
'Principal repayments on external debt, long-term (AMT, current US$)',
'Interest payments on external debt, long-term (INT, current US$)'
)
GROUP BY country_name
ORDER BY total_repayment ASC
LIMIT 1;Country Comparison: Bilateral vs. Multilateral Debt
-
Countries such as Egypt (Arab Republic) and Angola reflect substantial debt figures with $14.69 billion in bilateral .
-
And $4.82 billion in multilateral debt for Egypt,
-
And $18.3 billion in bilateral debt for Angola.
-
The overall trends demonstrate that Least Developed Countries often face significant bilateral debt pressures, while developing regions like South Asia experience relatively high levels of multilateral debt, likely influenced by multilateral lending bodies such as the World Bank and IMF.
SELECT country_name,
SUM(CASE WHEN indicator_name LIKE 'PPG, bilateral%' THEN debt ELSE 0 END) AS bilateral_debt,
SUM(CASE WHEN indicator_name LIKE 'PPG, multilateral%' THEN debt ELSE 0 END) AS multilateral_debt
FROM international_debt
GROUP BY country_name
ORDER BY bilateral_debt DESC, multilateral_debt DESC;
Multilateral vs. Bilateral Debt Comparison
Interest Payments Burden
- With China and Brazil reporting the highest debt obligations, the data suggests a need for strategic economic reforms to mitigate reliance on external financing.
- The data reflects a wide disparity between interest payments and principal repayments for various countries. High interest-to-principal ratios, as seen in Georgia (1.09), raise concerns over debt sustainability in several nations.