World Bank Demands Greater Debt Transparency from Developing Nations

The World Bank has issued a stark call for "radical" transparency among developing countries regarding sovereign debt. In a Friday report, the institution pushed for expanded disclosure requirements—including loan-level data, audit mandates, and restructuring term visibility—to curb financial opacity.

Axel van Trotsenburg, the Bank's senior managing director, emphasized the need for legal frameworks enforcing granular debt reporting. "We're seeing progress, but only 25% of low-income nations currently disclose loan-level details," he noted. Central bank swaps and collateralized transactions remain reporting obstacles.

Senegal and Cameroon exemplify the challenge—both have utilized private debt placements while navigating IMF scrutiny over historical misreporting. The Bank's transparency push appears effective nonetheless: debt data disclosure among low-income countries jumped from 60% in 2020 to over 75% today.