Leading Nations in Sovereign Bond Investment for 2025: Africa's Top Picks

In the global financial landscape of 2024 and 2025, African countries have been making significant strides in attracting international investment. This renewed interest is evident in the successful oversubscription of Eurobond issuances by nations such as Nigeria, Egypt, and Kenya. These oversubscriptions demonstrate a strong demand from global investors and signal confidence in the creditworthiness of these governments.

One country that has particularly impressed is Benin. Its financial credibility has been validated externally with a credit rating upgrade from B+ to BB- by Standard & Poor's in April 2024. Benin further solidified its position in the market by raising $750 million via a 14-year US dollar Eurobond in mid-February 2024, and returning with another $500 million bond issuance in January 2025.

Ghana is another African nation that has taken steps to improve its financial standing. In 2024, Ghana's parliament approved a $2.8 billion debt-relief agreement with official creditors, part of a broader restructuring framework that reschedules payments and materially eases near-term service burdens.

Zambia has also made significant progress, completing a landmark creditor restructuring that cleared the way for IMF support and market re-engagement. This move has reduced near-term rollover risk and improved its appeal to hard-currency bond investors.

Namibia has also taken proactive measures to limit rollover risk. The country pre-funded the bulk of its upcoming $750 million Eurobond maturity in October 2025, a move that has been well-received by bondholders.

Senegal has demonstrated strong investor appetite, particularly in its domestic and regional funding channels in the first half of 2025. Despite concerns about political transition, Senegal issued $750 million in two tranches maturing in 2031 at a coupon of 7.75%.

South Africa, with its deepest and most liquid onshore bond market in Sub-Saharan Africa, remains a cornerstone for sovereign bond investors.

Countries with IMF programs, restructured debt, or clear fiscal frameworks like Egypt, Ghana, and Zambia have improved access to international debt markets while managing borrowing costs effectively.

Notably, Egypt signed a $35 billion investment agreement with Abu Dhabi's ADQ to develop Ras El Hekma, its largest-ever FDI deal. However, Egypt's inflation remains elevated, hovering around 13-17% in mid-2025, down from over 30% in early 2024. The country's reliance on reform execution and regional stability underscores the credit's vulnerability to external shocks.

The aggregate African sovereign issuance in the first half of 2025 has surpassed $14 billion, up from $9.5 billion in the same period last year. Morocco, Côte d'Ivoire, and Benin saw Eurobond deals oversubscribed by 3 to 5 times in 2024/2025.

The continent's top-performing sovereign borrowers are drawing record demand, with oversubscribed Eurobond auctions, innovative liability-management operations, and robust IMF-backed reform programs restoring investor appetite after the 2022-2023 debt distress wave. Sovereign bond inflows support infrastructure, reform agendas, and liquidity, while providing investors with diversified yield opportunities, particularly in francophone and higher-beta African markets.