debt

The coronavirus pandemic is leaving a trail of devastation in low-income countries. This briefing aims to shine a light on the debt owed to private creditors by five African countries: Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal and Zambia. It outlines the steps which the G20 needs to take immediately to avert further economic chaos. 

“Today’s lack of progress on debt relief is as irresponsible as it is underwhelming. Merely encouraging private sector creditors and multilateral banks to participate in the Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) is woefully inadequate and a dereliction of duty. The G20 is in denial of the scale of response needed to address the worse global crisis in a century," said Jaime Atienza, Oxfam International’s Debt Policy Lead, in response to the communiqué of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting.

The coronavirus pandemic is fast pushing developing countries toward a debt crisis that would be catastrophic for their fight against poverty, with the likelihood of multi-billion-dollar defaults that will hurt the entire global economy, warned Oxfam ahead of the G20 Finance Ministers’ meeting this weekend (July 18-19).

 

Despite the clear message President Malpass sends on the critical importance of addressing debt, the Bank is the only one to fail to make any commitment on debt relief, said Oxfam today.

The IMF has already said that the coronavirus pandemic will trigger the worst economic fallout since the Great Depression —if ever there was a time to expand SDR allocations in a major way, it is now, said Oxfam today in response to the communiqué of the International Monetary and Financial Committee.

Without urgent action to relieve developing countries of all their external debt payments this year, and ensure they don't accrue into the future, the coronavirus could lead to millions of deaths and force half a billion more people around the world into poverty, said Oxfam today in response to the G7's joint statement on debt moratorium for poor countries.

The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) gold holdings have increased in value by $19.3 billion since the start of the global coronavirus pandemic, said Oxfam today. 

Every country in the world is experiencing an economic shock as a result of the Coronavirus crisis, and all governments must act now to protect their people from destitution. Unless dramatic action is taken to shore up the economies of developing countries, the crisis could push as many as half a billion people into poverty.

The World Bank today announced that 52 donor countries have committed to an $82 billion package for the 19th replenishment of the International Development Association (IDA19), the Bank’s fund for the world’s poorest countries.

A new survey of more than 1500 people has given one of the clearest pictures yet of the harsh economic struggle facing refugees who have fled from Syria to Lebanon.