Debt across the six countries of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community has never weighed this heavily on their regional market. Outstanding Treasury securities issued on the Bank of Central African States market reached 10,560.8 billion CFA francs at the end of July, roughly 18.64 billion dollars. In just one month, that figure grew by 3.34 percent, up from 10,220 billion in June. The increase pushes the region’s public debt ratio to 13.3 percent of gross domestic product, compared with 12.9 percent the previous month and barely 12 percent at the end of 2025.
This monthly jump is really just the latest chapter in a far steeper climb. The public securities market grew from around 7,500 billion CFA francs at the start of 2025 to 9,451.4 billion in January 2026, a 26 percent increase over twelve months. Fundraising has followed a similar pace: 6,764.7 billion CFA francs were raised between March 2025 and March 2026, compared with 5,699.9 billion the year before, according to the monetary policy report published by the central bank in June.
Gabon has emerged as the region’s leading issuer, with 3,420 billion CFA francs in outstanding securities, and also posted the sharpest nominal increase recorded in July. Congo follows with 3,040 billion, ahead of Cameroon at 2,060 billion. The Central African Republic and Chad also saw their outstanding debt rise over the period, while Equatorial Guinea stood out as the exception, posting a 1.55 percent decline.
Beyond the sheer volume borrowed, it’s the cost of that debt drawing the most concern from observers. All six governments continue leaning heavily on the regional market, yet financing has become both pricier and less guaranteed. Monetary tightening by the central bank, aimed at protecting foreign exchange reserves under pressure, is mechanically pushing up the interest rates demanded by lenders. In plain terms, creditors are now asking for higher returns to keep financing the sub-region’s public treasuries.
The makeup of creditors itself reflects this shift in the market. Primary dealers, mostly banks, held 6,800 billion CFA francs at the end of July, or 64.4 percent of all outstanding securities, down from 80.8 percent in 2018. Institutional investors held 2,150 billion, accounting for 20.4 percent of the total, while individual investors held 379.9 billion. This gradual diversification allows governments to widen their funding base beyond the banking sector alone, but it also confirms that buyers of public debt are now more selective and more demanding when it comes to returns.
For 2026, the six countries’ indicative programs pointed to additional issuance of between 3,900 and 4,000 billion CFA francs, with Cameroon leading planned volumes at 1,165 billion, ahead of Gabon, Chad, Equatorial Guinea and the Central African Republic. Medium and long-term Treasury bonds now account for 82.9 percent of the total stock, with most of those securities carrying maturities of two to five years.
This trend is unfolding against an already strained macroeconomic backdrop for the CEMAC zone. A failure to follow through on fiscal consolidation commitments made by heads of state in 2024, combined with stubbornly high public spending, has fed a steady deterioration in the region’s trade and budget deficits. The resulting decline in foreign exchange reserves directly threatens the sustainability of the zone’s currency peg, a concern that partly explains the heightened scrutiny the International Monetary Fund now demands before continuing its support programs for countries in the region.