Nearly half the world's population lives in countries where the government spends more on debt than education or healthcare

• More and more countries are struggling to pay their debts.
• Almost 40% of the developing world is in serious debt trouble, especially in Africa.

More and more countries in the developing world are facing a debt crisis, which could have a devastating impact on how they adjust to their skyrocketing populations.

According to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, 3.3 billion people live in countries where the government spends more on debt interest payments than education or health.

"Half our world is sinking into a development disaster, fuelled by a crushing debt crisis," Guterres said during a press conference this week, according to Al Jazeera, to introduce a new report on the state of the world's debt, adding: "And yet, because most of these unsustainable debts are concentrated in poor countries, they are not judged to pose a systemic risk to the global financial system. This is a mirage. 3.3 billion people is more than a systemic risk. It's a systemic failure."

And that number is just going to keep skyrocketing.

Nigeria, for example, is expected to nearly double its population by 2050, matching the United States as the third-largest country in the world. On the plus side, that population will be younger and should provide the workforce needed to move the country forward, especially in fields like tech. However, the risk is that Nigeria cannot keep up with the education needed for a young population that large.

According to the UN report, countries facing "high levels of debt" more than doubled from 22 in 2011 to 59 in just 11 years. The UN cites the typical needs of a developing country, exasperated by the COVID pandemic, rising housing costs, and climate change.

Another issue is that more and more debt in developing countries is held by private lenders who charge much higher interest rates. According to the UN, African countries pay four times more for loans than the US and eight times more than wealthy countries in Europe.

"Action will not be easy," Guterres said. "But it is essential, and urgent."