Azernews.Az

Qabil Ashirov

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Uzbekistan's public debt stood at $46.9 billion as of January 1, 2026, marking a 16.4% increase compared with the previous year.

AzerNEWS reports that the country's public debt-to-GDP ratio was estimated at 31.9%.

Under the Ministry of Economy and Finance's Fiscal Strategy for 2027–2029, the government expects the debt-to-GDP ratio to decline to 31% by the end of 2026, reflecting efforts to maintain fiscal sustainability despite rising borrowing.

At the end of 2025, Uzbekistan's external debt totaled $39.8 billion, while domestic debt reached $7 billion. External debt increased by 18.1% year-on-year, whereas domestic debt rose by 7.7%.

During 2025, the government signed $2.5 billion worth of external borrowing agreements to finance investment projects backed by state guarantees.

To reduce currency-related risks, Uzbekistan has been expanding borrowing in its national currency, the som. As a result, the share of public debt denominated in som increased from 5.9% in 2020 to 12.2% by the end of 2025.

The country's domestic government securities market has also grown significantly. The net issuance of government treasury bonds rose from 3.4 trillion som in 2020 to 30 trillion som in 2025, while the total volume of outstanding government bonds reached 49.9 trillion som by the end of the year.

The figures highlight Uzbekistan's continued reliance on borrowing to support investment and economic development while gradually shifting toward greater local-currency financing to strengthen debt resilience.