Joseph Inokotong, Abuja
The World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have called on all official bilateral creditors to suspend debt payments from International Development Assistance (IDA) countries that request forbearance with immediate effect, and consistent with national laws of the creditor countries.
This, they said, would help with IDA countries’ immediate liquidity needs to tackle challenges posed by the coronavirus outbreak and allow time for an assessment of the crisis impact and financing needs for each country.
In a joint statement from the Bank and the IMF regarding a call to action on the debt of IDA countries, they said “we invite G20 leaders to task the WBG and the IMF to make these assessments, including identifying the countries with unsustainable debt situations, and to prepare a proposal for comprehensive action by official bilateral creditors to address both the financing and debt relief needs of IDA countries.
“We will seek endorsement for the proposal at the Development Committee during the Spring Meetings (April 16–17)”.
The World Bank Group and the IMF believe it is imperative at this moment to provide a global sense of relief for developing countries as well as a strong signal to financial markets.
The statement added that the international community would welcome G20 support for this call to action.
They pointed out that “the coronavirus outbreak is likely to have severe economic and social consequences for IDA countries, home to a quarter of the world’s population and two-thirds of the world’s population living in extreme poverty.”