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Initiatives
Debt Accountability
Public debt is reshaping fiscal choices worldwide. Across many low- and middle-income countries, rising debt service costs are limiting fiscal space for key priorities communities need to thrive, such as education and healthcare. Without structured oversight and public engagement, debt decisions can become disconnected from budget priorities, long-term sustainability and the needs of communities. The Debt Accountability Initiative works to close that gap.
Scale of the problem
3.4 Billion
people live in developing countries spending more on debt payments than health or education. Source (UNCTAD 2025)
1/2
of Low-Income Countries are either in debt distress or at high risk of it (35/68). (IMF, 2025)
43%
Of countries globally fail to disclose their level of indebtedness in their budget proposal. (Open Budget Survey 2023)
About
Why is debt accountability important?
Public debt can finance essential investments in infrastructure, health and education. When borrowing is transparent and well-governed, it can help countries and communities thrive. But when debt decisions are opaque, poorly scrutinized or politically driven:
- Debt service can crowd out social spending.
- Risks may not be debated in parliament or disclosed in accessible formats.
- Audit findings may not trigger follow-up or corrective action.
- People and communities are left outside decisions that affect long-term fiscal trade-offs.
Debt accountability requires more than better data. It requires stronger ecosystems to scrutinize how public money is managed.
Approach
The Debt Accountability Initiative strengthens the fiscal ecosystem, or the institutions and actors that shape borrowing decisions and oversight: ministries of finance, debt management offices, parliaments, national auditors, civil society organizations, media and others. The effectiveness of accountability depends not only on the strength of each institution, but on how they work together. We also recognize that debt and budgeting are interdependent. When borrowing decisions are linked to budget priorities, audit processes, and public debate, oversight becomes more durable and meaningful.
Objectives
We strengthen debt accountability by ensuring borrowing decisions are transparent, scrutinized and responsive to public priorities. We do this in four ways:
- Generate credible evidence. Through the Open Budget Survey (OBS) Debt Accountability Module, we assess whether countries have the transparency, participation and oversight conditions needed for meaningful public scrutiny of debt.
- Build civil society capacity and networks. We support civil society organizations to analyze debt data, link borrowing decisions to service delivery outcomes and engage strategically during key budget and audit moments.
- Institutionalize multi-stakeholder reform dialogue. We facilitate structured platforms where Supreme Audit Institutions, civil society, legislatures, and executive governments jointly review diagnostics, audit findings and reform priorities — moving from transparency to concrete reform actions.
- Engage with global systems and norms. We connect country-level lessons to international debates and platforms to promote inclusive and accountable debt oversight practices.
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
Debt Accountability Investigative Journalism Fellowship
The International Budget Partnership (IBP) and the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) invite Nigerian investigative journalists to apply for the Debt Accountability Investigative Journalism Fellowship, a structured, time-limited engagement to produce deeply reported, rigorously sourced investigations into the use, management, and legislative oversight of public debt in Nigeria.
This fellowship brings together IBP’s expertise in fiscal transparency and civil society engagement with WFD’s leadership in helping parliaments hold governments to account on borrowing and public debt management. Together, IBP and WFD are implementing a two-year Debt Accountability Project in Nigeria, building a stronger ecosystem of actors who can advocate for transparency, monitor how public money is borrowed and spent, and support meaningful reform.
Thematic Focus Areas:
- Where Did the Money Go? – Use of Borrowed Funds
- Who Approved This? – Parliamentary Oversight of Borrowing
- What Are We Paying For? – Debt Service and Its Fiscal Implications
- What Does Nigeria Really Owe? – Contracted Debt, Hidden Obligations, and Contingent Liabilities
- The Return on Investment – Did the Borrowing Deliver for Communities?
| Submit to | [email protected] |
| Subject line | Debt Accountability Fellowship Application – [Your Full Name] |
| Deadline | July 3rd 2026, at 23:59 West Africa Time |
| Queries | Kachi Chukwu ([email protected]) |
The Change we seek
These efforts aim to achieve the following reforms:
- Regular, institutionalized review of borrowing decisions and audit findings by parliaments and auditors.
- Clearer integration of debt information into national budget documents and debates.
- Civil society organizations engaging strategically on debt during budget formulation and audit follow-up processes.
- Documented executive responses to audit recommendations.
- International guidance that recognizes the importance of domestic oversight ecosystems alongside technical debt management reforms.
Debt is not just a number on a balance sheet; it is a commitment to future generations that must be grounded in transparency, sustainability, and the public trust.
Parliaments are the ultimate stewards of the public purse; their role is not just to approve debt, but to ensure that every borrowed dollar is matched by a plan for its repayment and its public benefit.
Where We Work in this Area
Measuring change
Key Impacts
- Published analysis which flagged the following domestic accountability challenges in public borrowing and debt management: limited legislative engagement, constrained audit capacity, weak coordination across oversight actors and limited public-facing communication of debt information.
- Piloted a Debt Accountability Module Assessment of the Open Budget Survey across 11 countries to generate cross-country evidence.
- In partnership with the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, piloted ecosystem-based approaches in Senegal and Nigeria to strengthen collaboration on debt oversight between parliaments, executive bodies, national auditors, civil society groups and journalists.
- Engaged in regional and global forums to promote more inclusive and accountable debt governance.
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