According to the World Bank's International Debt Report 2026, Uzbekistan's public and state-guaranteed external debt reached $48.46 billion by the end of 2025, which is more than the $46.41 billion held by Kazakhstan. Nevertheless, Kazakhstan remains the largest borrower in the region in terms of total external debt, amounting to $183.1 billion, compared to $88.03 billion for Uzbekistan.
The main reason for the differences lies in private sector borrowings. Kazakh companies without state guarantees owe foreign creditors $115 billion, whereas their Uzbek counterparts owe $32.84 billion. Public debt accounts for about a quarter of Kazakhstan's total external debt, while in Uzbekistan it exceeds half.
Collectively, all five Central Asian countries owe foreign creditors approximately $293.7 billion, which is higher than the approximately $189.6 billion in 2015. The growth of about 72% over the decade is driven by Uzbekistan, whose external debt increased 6.5 times. Kyrgyzstan's debt grew from $7.72 billion to $12.53 billion, Tajikistan's from $5.15 billion to $7.15 billion, and Kazakhstan's from $156.15 billion to $183.1 billion. Turkmenistan went in the opposite direction, reducing its external debt from $7 billion to $2.85 billion.
In 2025, Uzbekistan demonstrated the fastest annual growth in external debt at 24.7%. Kazakhstan's debt grew by 10.3%, Kyrgyzstan's by 4.8%, and Tajikistan's by 1.8%. Meanwhile, Turkmenistan reduced its external debt by 14.1%.
Relative to the size of their economies, Kazakhstan had the highest debt burden, as external debt constituted 64% of its gross national income. In Uzbekistan, this figure was 60%, in Kyrgyzstan 56%, in Tajikistan 29%, and in Turkmenistan 6%.
On a per capita basis, external debt amounted to about $8,800 per person in Kazakhstan, about $2,400 in Uzbekistan, $1,700 in Kyrgyzstan, $660 in Tajikistan, and $375 in Turkmenistan.
Kazakhstan also faced the heaviest debt servicing burden relative to exports. In 2025, the country spent 64% of its export revenue on servicing external debt. In Uzbekistan, this figure was 29%, in Kyrgyzstan 28%, and in Tajikistan 8%. Kyrgyzstan's ratio almost tripled compared to 2024, while in Uzbekistan it decreased by 18.6%. The report does not contain data on export-related debt servicing for Turkmenistan.
China remained the largest bilateral creditor for four countries in the region. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan were most dependent on Chinese financing: $1.5 billion out of $1.9 billion of Kyrgyzstan's debt to foreign governments belonged to China, and the corresponding figure for Tajikistan was $738 million out of $894 million. Uzbekistan owes China $3.85 billion, and Kazakhstan owes $1.95 billion.
The composition of multilateral creditors varied across the region. The Asian Development Bank became Uzbekistan's largest multilateral creditor, with an outstanding debt of $8.36 billion. Kazakhstan owed the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development the most, amounting to $3.63 billion. The Association for International Development Assistance was the largest multilateral creditor for Kyrgyzstan, totaling $930 million, while Turkmenistan owes the Islamic Development Bank $811 million.
Kazakhstan relied most heavily on market borrowings. Of its public and state-guaranteed debt of $46.41 billion, $33.22 billion was owed to private creditors. Corresponding amounts were $15.11 billion for Uzbekistan, $700 million for Kyrgyzstan, $357 million for Tajikistan, and $240 million for Turkmenistan.
The terms of new loans also differed. In 2025, official creditors offered Kyrgyzstan the lowest interest rates—an average of 1.2% per annum with a repayment period of 28 years. Kazakhstan borrowed from official creditors at a rate of 1.9%, Turkmenistan at 2.8%, Uzbekistan at 3.4%, and Tajikistan at 5.6%.
Among private creditors, Kazakhstan took funds at a weighted average rate of 4.9%, Kyrgyzstan at 7.8%, and Uzbekistan at 8.6%. Tajikistan and Turkmenistan did not receive new loans from private creditors in 2025.
