The exchange for the debt economy
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Across much of Africa, collecting outstanding debts remains a high-risk and often frustrating exercise for businesses and lenders, as weak payment cultures and slow legal systems continue to weigh heavily on creditors.
New insights from Allianz Trade’s Collection Complexity Score and Rating place Africa, alongside the Middle East, among the world’s most difficult regions for debt recovery. The findings point to persistent structural problems, including poor payment discipline, long Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), delayed court proceedings and ineffective bankruptcy laws.
Late payments are especially common in transactions involving public-sector institutions and large corporations, where settlement delays have become routine in many markets. These challenges are further compounded by legal systems that are slow, complex or difficult to enforce, leaving creditors with limited recovery options.
Against this backdrop, certain African countries stand out as particularly challenging environments for debt collection. Based on payment behaviour, legal efficiency and the complexity of bankruptcy processes, the following markets rank among the toughest for creditors on the continent.
South Africa
South Africa is widely regarded as the most complex debt recovery market in Africa. Standard payment terms frequently extend to 90 days, well above international benchmarks. Heavy court backlogs, administrative delays and prolonged liquidation procedures under the Master of the High Court make recovery uncertain and time-consuming. Insolvency cases rarely yield significant returns for unsecured creditors, discouraging legal action.
Egypt
Egypt has introduced stricter regulations and improved banking oversight in a bid to strengthen payment practices, but late payments remain prevalent across both public and private sectors. Creditors can use structured legal tools such as the Order for Payment for uncontested debts, while disputed claims are handled by the Economic Courts, often requiring several hearings. Recovery largely depends on the ability to trace debtor assets, with unsecured creditors typically receiving little in liquidation cases.
Morocco
Morocco continues to face weak payment behaviour, with average delays ranging between 90 and 120 days. Its legal system is complex and often criticised for inefficiency and limited transparency. Although several insolvency mechanisms exist, they are frequently slow and ineffective, and enforcing court rulings can be extremely difficult, making debt recovery through legal channels unattractive.
Senegal
In Senegal, payment discipline is generally poor, particularly in business-to-business transactions. While official DSO averages around 30 days, actual payments often stretch beyond 60 days, especially when public administrations and large companies are involved. Debt recovery data is less centralised than in Europe, complicating enforcement. The country operates under civil law frameworks defined by the OHADA treaty, which offers regional consistency but does not eliminate delays in practice.
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