Unesco found that in 2025 more was spent on servicing foreign debt than on education in 113 developing countries, with 18 of those countries spending five times more on debt and Sri Lanka spending up to 16 times more. In sub-Saharan Africa governments spent 3.6 times more on debt than on education. Unesco warned that cuts to education aid are worsening the problem: low and lower middle income countries lost 21% of the education aid they received in 2023 and could lose up to 30% by 2027, and funding to education fell by $600 million in 2024. Debt Justice reported that repayments by poorer countries hit a 35 year high last year, with 56 countries spending almost a fifth of total revenue on loan servicing. Min Jeong Kim, director of Unesco’s education division, said current approaches trap countries in a cycle of austerity and underinvestment that erodes their ability to handle debt over time. Unesco called for a shift from short term debt relief to longer term arrangements that protect public service financing, while Debt Justice urged changes to prevent private creditors blocking relief and asked the UK to use its 2027 G20 presidency to push for more debt cancellation and faster processes.
