Consequently, the overall  Page 2 of 11  fiscal balance for SSA moved from an average surplus of 1,7 per cent of GDP2 in 2004-08 to a deficit of 4,9 per cent in 2016.
Government debt accelerated markedly over this period, for example from 28 per cent of GDP to around 70 per cent in Angola and from 30 to 50 per cent of GDP in South Africa. Foreign exchange reserves have been run down in some countries and inflows of foreign direct investment declined in the region as a whole.