Student loan debt is a worldwide problem. In the United States, the country's overall student debt reached a record $1.6 trillion this year.The average person with student loan debt in the U.S. owes between $20,000 and nearly $25,000.In Japan, the group that oversees the government's student loan system recently reported it has been lending over $9 billion to students every year since 2010.Similar conditions exist in Africa and South America, says former United Nations Population Division director Joseph Chamie.He suggests several reasons for high student loan debt. One is that employers everywhere have increased their demands for skilled workers, making higher education a requirement for many jobs.This means more students are seeking higher education worldwide than ever before.At the same time, governments are investing less money in public colleges and universities.
