More than two decades after the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative wrote off over $100bn [€85bn] in developing country sovereign debt, the issue of debt and debt relief are back on the agenda.
Despite major cuts to development aid budgets in the US and Europe making headlines, it is debt policy that has been the main dividing line between rich and poor countries ahead of the UN Financing for Development [FfD] summit in Seville which starts on Monday (30 June.)
Small Island Developing States (SIDS), members of the Africa Group, and Pakistan and Brazil have called for the creation of a UN Framework Convention on Debt, “with a view to closing gaps in the debt architecture and exploring options to address debt…