Christian Aid is asking for the debt repayments of the poorest countries to be cancelled while the world tackles the coronavirus pandemic.
The charity has launched a Cancel The Debt campaign calling on the UK Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, to broker a debt relief deal. This comes ahead of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meeting this week (17-19 April 2020) to discuss the details of a coronavirus Global Rescue Package.
Christian Aid says poor and vulnerable communities in developing countries are less able to cope with the virus, with 40% of the world’s population unable to access soap and water, and millions living in crowded and precarious situations.
‘Although the health impacts in developing countries are small so far, the economic effects of the pandemic have already hit them hard, with commodity prices, exports and public revenues affected and many people forced out of work. Additional lockdowns and movement restrictions could exacerbate the effects further. In the poorest nations, there is little social protection in place, and when the health implications do start to rise, poor and vulnerable communities will need a great deal of support’, commented Matti Kohonen, Principle Adviser on Private Sector, Policy and Advocacy at Christian Aid.
It is estimated that 76 of the world’s poorest countries are due to spend $18.6bn (£15.5bn) in 2020 on debt payments to other governments, $12.4bn to multilateral institutions and $10.1bn to external private creditors – $40.6bn in total.
Add your name to the campaign on the Christian Aid website.
