Borrowing requirements by governments in Africa to finance their budget deficits are met by both funds raised on financial markets and to a decreasing extent by non-marketable debt via bilateral, multilateral and concessional loans. Debt management techniques and policies can influence substantially the development and liquidity of local currency bond markets. Cross-border government borrowings have become more significant. Government debt instruments attract both institutional and retail investors and have an important share in the portfolios of both domestic and foreign fund managers.

Government debt managers have the responsibility to issue debt instruments to meet the borrowing needs of governments, to manage the outstanding stock of debt and to contribute to the development of the market infrastructure. The type of debt instruments to be issued and the amounts to be raised depend not only on the volume of the borrowing requirement but also on the liquidity of the various outstanding instruments, preferences of investors and, more generally, on the financial and macroeconomic environment. Raising funds through marketable instruments will depend on factors such as access to well-functioning primary and secondary markets (in particular market liquidity), and the presence of well-developed market segments – institutional and retail investors.

Angola, Cameroon, Gabon, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Malawi, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda and Zambia. Data for 2010 excludes Angola, Gabon, Malawi, Namibia and Nigeria.

Issuance of marketable government bonds and bills is traditionally the responsibility of the Ministry of Finance (MoF). However, this task is frequently assigned to the Central Bank in many African countries. The Central Bank typically has the necessary staff with capital market expertise that the MoF lacks for such front office tasks as conducting auctions, managing tab sales or buybacks, as well as communicating and interacting with market participants. It is therefore well suited to manage the task of issuing marketable government securities on behalf of the MoF.