Nigeria, Dec. 17 -- Prof. Kevin Urama, Chief Economist and Vice President of Economic Governance and Knowledge Management at the African Development Bank (AfDB), has disclosed that African countries will need $74 billion in 2024 to meet their debt obligations.

Urama said this during the Debt Management Forum for Africa (DeMFA) launch and first policy discussion, which took place in Abuja on Monday.

Making Debt Work for Africa: Policies, Practices, and Options was the event's theme.

Underscoring the severity of Africa's debt load, Urama clarified that the 2024 debt service obligation of $74 billion represents a substantial increase from $17 billion in 2010. Of this sum, $40 billion, or 54% of the total debt service, is payable to privat...