With the global economic challenges that followed the COVID-19 pandemic, the combined debt stock of low- and middle-income countries rose by 5.6%, from $8.6 trillion in 2020 to $9 trillion in 2021. Globally, countries have devised policy responses to alleviate the economic shocks induced by the pandemic. However, debt accumulation is not evenly distributed across countries or regions. Some economies with existing debt vulnerabilities have become even more fragile, while others have seen their external debt stock reduced. In fact, statistics for country groups and regions mask the deterioration of debt outlook at the individual country level. […]