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The global discussion around debt relief for low-income and fragile countries during #COVID19 is gathering momentum. There are various dimensions to the current debt situation, especially for #Africa. Here’s a short thread for those interested to follow the discussions 1/n
The World Bank and IMF recently issued a joint call to the G20 for temporary suspension of debt service payments by IDA countries (low-income and fragile countries) to help provide liquidity in these countries to tackle #COVID19 2/n https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2020/03/25/pr20103-joint-statement-world-bank-group-and-imf-call-to-action-on-debt-of-ida-countries
A group of high-profile Africans (incl. Okonjo-Iweala, Thiam, Songwe) are calling for debt relief for African countries. Specifically, they are calling for a "two-year standstill on all external debt repayments, both interest & principal." 3/n https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/africa-needs-debt-relief-to-fight-covid-19/?preview_id=798797
To get a sense of the debt profile in Africa, this paper is a good source. Shows that a large & growing share of govt debt is owed to commercial creditors, compared to multilateral, Paris Club bilateral and non-Paris Club bilateral lenders 4/n
http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/370721580415352349/pdf/Borrow-with-Sorrow-The-Changing-Risk-Profile-of-Sub-Saharan-Africas-Debt.pdf
http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/370721580415352349/pdf/Borrow-with-Sorrow-The-Changing-Risk-Profile-of-Sub-Saharan-Africas-Debt.pdf
This podcast with Tim Jones of the Jubilee Debt Campaign also offers an interesting perspective. Despite the title, the discussion is *not* just about Chinese loans in Africa. There’s a good primer on the how and why of Africa’s overall debt profile 5/n https://open.spotify.com/episode/03dqJkgzsKoBBFBJb2OSwQ?si=Bl448PUhTa24dpbMMMNUSQ
