Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov said the country's public debt has fallen to 39% of gross domestic product (GDP), compared with external debt of around 120% of GDP before 2020, as he commented on the state of the nation's finances.

Zhaparov noted that a country's external debt is assessed in relation to its GDP and said Kyrgyzstan has made significant progress in reducing its debt burden, The Caspian Post reports, citing Kabar.

"While before 2020, Kyrgyzstan's external debt amounted to approximately 120% of GDP, today the total public debt is 39% of GDP. I have tasked the Cabinet of Ministers with preventing this figure from exceeding 50% in the future," the president said.

He stressed that, unlike in previous years, all borrowed funds are now being used exclusively to implement specific projects.

According to Zhaparov, every loan is subject to full oversight, and projects financed through borrowed funds are expected to generate sufficient returns to repay the investments independently.

The president also pointed out that public debt exceeds 100% of GDP in many countries around the world, adding that Kyrgyzstan does not intend to follow that path.