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Topic: Highly Indebted Poor Countries

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	50 Years Is Enough Network Statement on the HIPC Debt Initiative
		The current debt burden of the poorest heavily indebted countries is unsustainable because of: the large proportion of natural, financial and human resources used to service the debt; the debt overhang; and the harsh conditionality that accompanies the never-ending string of new loans disbursed to ensure repayment of old loans.
		De-linking debt relief from structural adjustment conditionality and annulling significant portions of the debt of the highly indebted poor countries (HIPC) is the most efficient and effective way to break countries out of the debt, conditionality and rescheduling trap that constrains (and in some cases precludes) their progress toward sustainable development.
		It is citizens, the majority of whom are poor, that in the end repay the debt of their nations, yet they are excluded from the decision to borrow money, the determination of acceptable conditionality, and too often from such benefits as derive from projects and policies funded by multilateral development bank (MDBs) loans.
	www.50years.org /factsheets/hipc.html (713 words)

	An Overview of Africa's Debt in the Context of the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs) Initiative (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
		The HIPCs initiative, which targets 41 of the most highly indebted poor countries, was designed by the staffs of the World Bank and IMF, in close consultation with the G.7 countries, and was approved by their respective Boards of Governors in October 1996 and their Executive Directors in November 1996.
		For countries dependent upon official flows, which included most of the poor countries, the Paris Club forum was well suited to resolving their problems, by restructuring official debt, including principal, interest and arrears, on a case-by-case basis.
		The issue here is the basis of country classification, and whether or not a potential conflict of interest on the part of the Bank and the Fund, driven by the possible objective of minimizing costs to themselves, may not have been a factor in what appears to be restrictive country eligibility.
	www.uneca.org /eca_resources/Major_ECA_Websites/6finmin/cmfhipc.htm (9780 words)

	Jubilee Research : Tracking HIPC : What is HIPC
		HIPC was also the first attempt by creditors to deal with the debts of the poorest countries in a comprehensive way.
		However, even after countries have passed Decision Point, the provision of interim relief is not guaranteed — a total of thirteen countries, for example, have seen their interim relief from the IMF suspended at some point.
		When a country follows a PRGF programme, its economy becomes orientated towards exports, in order to raise hard currency revenues for the repayments of debts (and the payment of imports.) The creditor countries rarely remove as many of the barriers to trade that protect their own domestic markets.
	www.jubileeresearch.org /hipc/what_is_hipc.htm (2584 words)

	Christian Aid reports: Who owes who
		Rich countries pursue highly indebted poor countries to service their foreign financial debts, at great cost to the millions who subsequently go without vital health and education services.
		And it is poor people in poor countries who suffer first and worst from both extreme weather conditions connected to climate change, and from the struggle to service unpayable foreign debts.
		On the same calculation the group of highly indebted poor countries (HIPCs) are running up credits of between $141-$612 billion because of their under-use of fossil fuel resources and the climate.(3) At the higher end of the scale this gives a credit three times the conventional debt of the HIPCs, which stands around $200 billion.
	www.christian-aid.org.uk /indepth/9909whoo/whoo1.htm (683 words)

	SSRN-How Did Highly Indebted Poor Countries Become Highly Indebted? Reviewing Two Decades of Debt Relief by William ...
		Average policies in highly indebted poor countries were generally worse than those in other developing countries, controlling for income.
		The trend for terms of trade was no different in highly indebted poor countries than in other developing countries, not were wars more likely in highly indebted poor countries.
		Although debt relief is done in the name of the poor, the poor are worse off if debt relief creates incentives to delay reforms needed for growth.
	papers.ssrn.com /sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=189390 (500 words)

	The Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Debt Forgiveness Initiative by Caritas International and CIDSE
		Until the HIPC Initiative was approved in 1996, the international financial institutions would not allow rescheduling or cancellation of their loans, although in practice they did so by enabling countries to pay off old loans by taking out new ones at lower interest rates and longer terms.
		Such reductions in a country still recovering from civil war and considered the second poorest country in the hemisphere would be devastating for its people, far worse than the benefits that a small amount of debt relief would bring.
		Some powerful G-7 countries, as well as some middle income countries that are unlikely to be eligible for HIPC debt relief, have not committed sufficient resources to bilateral debt relief.
	www.worldhunger.org /articles/global/debt/caritas3.htm (1463 words)

	Bruno Wenn - Economic Growth and Poverty Reduction in Highly Indebted Poor Countries
		For this reason, as far as the highly indebted poor countries are concerned, it is necessary to place a stronger focus than before on the reciprocal relations between the developmental goals of encouraging growth, reducing poverty and debt sustainability and to implement them in practical development work.
		However, the poor countries need to be capable of financing the social measures increasingly from their own resources.
		Unfortunately, the poorest countries must rely on external funds being available not only for capital investment but also for part of their current consumption of services in the sectors I just mentioned, which will lead to strengthening their economic power and to additional foreign-exchange earnings only in the very long term.
	www.inwent.org /ef-texte/debts/wenn.htm (1767 words)

	UN Watch: The Reinventing Of The IMF/World Bank
		The countries described as highly indebted poor countries obtained this label in 1996 as a result of their deep indebtedness.
		All resource transfers to countries which enjoy capital market access (investment grade of BBB or better) or per capita income in excess of $4,000 would be phased out over the next five years while those countries with a per capita income of $2,500, would have official assistance limited.
		As a result of the Meltzer Report, it appears that the poor countries, and specifically the highly indebted poor countries of the world are now, after years of having their loans turned over, are going to be set free to go out into the world to obtain financing.
	www.womensgroup.org /unwatch_20000903.html (4988 words)

	Asia Times - Asia's most knowledgable news source
		In the poorest countries, progress in life expectancy, reduction in infant and child mortality, and increase in the rate of growth of school enrollment was also slower for the second period.
		Their current HIPC initiative has only reduced debt levels by about a third and merely seeks to reduce the countries' debts to "manageable levels", tied to their export levels.
		To make matters worse, the harmful policy conditions that poor countries had to comply with to receive loans from these institutions are now being used as a condition for debt reduction as well.
	www.atimes.com /atimes/Global_Economy/FJ06Dj01.html (829 words)

	Factsheet - Debt Relief Under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative
		The HIPC Initiative was first launched in 1996 by the IMF and World Bank, with the aim of ensuring that no poor country faces a debt burden it cannot manage.
		Once a country has met or made sufficient progress in meeting these criteria, the Executive Boards of the IMF and IDA formally decide on its eligibility for debt relief, and the international community commits to reducing debt to the agreed sustainability threshold.
		Twenty countries have already reached their completion points and have received or are receiving irrevocable debt relief from the IMF and other creditors.
	www.imf.org /external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm (1034 words)

	Debt Relief - Social and Economic Policy - Global Policy Forum
		More countries might eventually qualify for debt relief, the Fund also announced, but only if they demonstrate “satisfactory progress in a few policy areas.” Fearing that the IMF could tie debt relief to economic benchmarks, anti-debt campaigners urge further actions to eliminate all forms of debt for poor countries.
		African countries and anti-debt activists say the slow progress costs lives because poor countries have to use their scarce financial resources for debt service instead of providing basic health services for their people.
		Highly indebted poor countries can qualify for debt relief only if they implement IMF and World Bank-prescribed programs of “reform and sound policies,” which in several cases caused poor countries’ breakdowns.
	www.globalpolicy.org /socecon/develop/debt/index.htm (4743 words)

	Delivering on the Promise of the Enhanced HIPC Initiative
		Good governance, prudent new borrowing, and sound debt management by heavily indebted poor countries (HIPCs), as well as responsible financing by creditors, are also essential elements of the policy framework needed to achieve these goals.
		The enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative, launched following the Köln Summit in 1999, is an important avenue for debt reduction.
		Finally, we agreed on the need for bilateral donors to consider financing HIPCs and HIPC "graduates" primarily through grants for a sustained period, and to refrain from supporting unproductive expenditures.
	www.state.gov /e/eb/rls/othr/11512.htm (905 words)

	Debt relief a fraud and a trap for poor countries
		It is common knowledge that the pledge recently made by "richer nations" to help relieve the crushing debt-burden on poor countries has not been honoured, since the funds promised for the purpose (under the new debt-relief programme being managed by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank) have not been handed over.
		Zambia, whose debt-relief package is described by Oxfam as "a fraud", is not the only HIPC country being taken for a ride by the G7 industrialized states and the financial institutions that they control.
		One African country that has good reason to resent the fraud is Uganda, which has been singled out by the US and the European Union states as the most deserving qualifier.
	www.muslimedia.com /archives/special00/debtpoor.htm (853 words)

	SCADPlus: Least developed countries (LDC): introduction
		There are currently 50 countries considered to be the least developed countries (LDCs), 40 of which are ACP countries.
		This category of countries is distinguished by the level of poverty of the population and the lack of economic, institutional and human resources.
		One of the main initiatives is the debt-relief initiative for highly-indebted poor countries (HIPC), which aims to provide faster and deeper debt relief for certain countries.
	europa.eu /scadplus/leg/en/lvb/r12400.htm (468 words)

	Research - The G8 Debt Relief Plan May Not Help - Stanford GSB
		The researchers found that the value of the Brady countries’ stock markets increased by $42 billion during the time they were outlining their debt relief strategies.
		To compare the infrastructure of the typical Brady and highly indebted poor countries, Henry used a measure constructed by Stanford economist Robert Hall and University of California, Berkeley, economist Charles Jones.
		When a country’s principal problem is inadequate institutions, there is no reason to believe that debt relief will stimulate a rush of foreign capital, generating higher investment and growth.
	www.gsb.stanford.edu /news/research/econ_henry_g8debtrelief.shtml (1173 words)

	SD: Harvard/GCA Conference on HIPCs
		He suggested that post-conflict countries in particular require such a huge investment of resources that their situation should not be considered in the context of debt relief.
		In response, Sachs noted that donor countries have accepted the principle that there will be fairly deep debt relief and said it is important to push for further progress by making it clear that what is on offer is not adequate and is not happening fast enough.
		She called upon Jubilee 2000 to assist with the education of civil society in HIPCs on the magnitude of the debt problem and urged Jubilee 2000 to establish contact with peace activists and women activists in Africa.
	www.iisd.ca /sd/hipc (1579 words)

	Fondad publication - Debt Relief: Myths and Reality
		In 1996, the international community introduced the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative to provide a permanent exit from the repeated debt reschedulings of HIPCs in the Paris Club and bring their external debts to sustainable levels.
		Issues addressed include the bailing-out of IMF loans by donor countries, the (mis)use of aid funds for debt relief and repayment of export credits, the need for including domestic debt in assessments of debt sustainability, and the question of whether debt relief should be de-linked from IMF conditionality.
		With a view to the future of low-income countries, the book relates the HIPC Initiative to the Millennium Development Goals and warns that debt relief can only provide a fraction of the funds required for reducing poverty and avoiding a new build-up of unsustainable debt.
	www.fondad.org /publications/hipc/contents.htm (461 words)

	Heavily Indebted Poor Countries - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) are countries with the highest levels of poverty in the world (see least developed countries) which are the subject of international debt relief measures aiming to reduce their external debt to sustainable levels.
		The HIPC program identifies 38 countries, 32 of which are in Sub-Saharan Africa, as being potentially eligible to receive debt relief (2004).
		Further progress towards debt relief was announced on December 21, 2005, when the IMF granted preliminary approval to an initial debt relief measure of US $3.3 billion for 19 of the world's poorest countries, with the World Bank expected to write off the larger debts owed by 17 HIPCs in mid-2006 [1].
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Highly_Indebted_Poor_Countries (402 words)

	Birmingham Summit: Relief for the Poorest Countries
		This demonstrates that the HIPC initiative framework can meet the need for a case-by-case treatment of the situations that the poorest countries are faced with today.
		All other countries which are committing themselves courageously to the needed adjustment efforts deserve reinforced support from the international financial community.
		For the middle-income countries, France and Britain have already pledged to forgive the vast majority of our bilateral debt related to development assistance We should now focus on measures to foster their access to private capital flows.
	www.iht.com /articles/1998/05/15/edbrown.t.php (748 words)

	Archived Articles on Debt Relief - Social and Economic Policy - Global Policy Forum
		Jeffrey Sachs is urging poor nations to redirect their debt payments away from rich creditors and spend the money on health and education.
		If those countries are to break out of poverty for good, they must be integrated into the global economy and be allowed to set their own development priorities.
		Amid criticism that the HIPC debt relief intiative of last year is stalling, the UK proposed to oversee a new International drive to write off the debts of the world's poorest countries.
	www.globalpolicy.org /socecon/develop/debt/indexarch.htm (6744 words)

	Economic Policy and Debt - The Enhanced HIPC Initiative
		The Initiative’s debt-burden thresholds were adjusted downward, which enabled a broader group of countries to qualify for larger volumes of debt relief.
		Nominal debt service relief under HIPC to the 29 countries that have reached their decision points has been estimated to amount to about US$62 billion.
		Establishing a track record of reform in the remaining countries potentially eligible for HIPC; several of these countries are affected by conflict and several have problems of protracted external arrears.
	www.worldbank.org /hipc (566 words)

	BBC NEWS \| Business \| G8 reaches deal for world's poor
		The G8 countries are the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Russia.
		Thirty-eight countries are eligible for debt relief under the HIPC (highly-indebted poor countries initiative).
		Debt campaigners argue that an additional 24 countries should be included in any debt relief plan, including such large debtors as Nigeria, Bangladesh and Indonesia.
	news.bbc.co.uk /1/hi/business/4083676.stm (651 words)

	USCCB - Statement on Debt Relief for Poor Countries (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
		Nevertheless, we believe that a definitive resolution of the debt problem is an essential complement to these efforts if poor countries are to move towards the Millennium Development Goals for poverty reduction and human development.
		This is because, despite its accomplishments, HIPC has failed to achieve the Jubilee promise of a “fresh start” for the poor.
		It is also necessary that the substantial number of highly indebted poor countries not currently eligible for the HIPC program be considered for deep debt reduction.
	www.usccb.org /sdwp/international/statemjune04.htm (560 words)

	Developing countries' debt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		It is considered by some a method of oppression or control by first world countries; a form of debt bondage on the scale of nations.
		Odious debt is debt incurred by undemocratic countries and misspent (for example, on armaments or repression of the population) or misappropriated.
		First world critics of this point of view state that many of these debts were freely entered into by those countries' governments; it has, however, been argued that many of these governments were dictatorships or kleptocracies, and that the people of Third World countries cannot be held responsible for the actions of those governments.
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Third_world_debt (2452 words)

	Debt Relief Enhancement Act of 2002
		H. To ensure that the Enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiative achieves the objective of substantially increasing resources available for human development and poverty reduction in heavily indebted poor countries, and for other purposes.
		To ensure that the Enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiative achieves the objective of substantially increasing resources available for human development and poverty reduction in heavily indebted poor countries, and for other purposes.
		(1) ENHANCED HIPC INITIATIVE- The term `Enhanced HIPC Initiative' means the multilateral debt initiative for heavily indebted poor countries presented in the Report of G-7 Finance Ministers on the Cologne Debt Initiative to the Cologne Economic Summit, Cologne, 18-20 June, 1999.
	www.theorator.com /bills107/hr4524.html (1454 words)

	IRC Americas Program \| The Implications of Argentina's Struggle with IMF Debt for Highly Indebted Poor Countries
		Like HIPC nations, Argentina was faced with prodigious external debt owed to private and public creditors at the same time as it had to deal with economic and social chaos.
		This created a precarious dilemma for Nestor Kirchner’s government: It could either become the first non-“pariah”3 state to default to the IMF and free itself from IMF conditional loans, or it could divert domestic income from its recovering economy for debt service to its creditors and continue co-piloting its economy with the Fund.
		In 2002 the eight HIPC nations that had current account and trade surpluses were: South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Yemen, Cote d’Ivoire, Bangladesh, and the Philippines.
	americas.irc-online.org /am/755 (1725 words)

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