External debt

Covid-19 on a debt assault

17 April 2020 - by Eric Toussaint, Christophe Koessler

The Committee for the Abolition of Illegitimate Debt (CADTM) is of the opinion that the limited resources of the countries of the South should be devoted to fight the pandemic rather than reimbursing international creditors. The coronavirus crisis and its cascading economic consequences could (...)
African governments’ debt payments double in just two years

8 October 2018 - by Jubilee Debt Campaign

• Debt problems on the African continent are increasing, with external government debt payments doubling in two years • The private sector is the largest source of loans, accounting for 32% of debt owed and 55% of interest payments • China accounts for around 20% of debt owed, and 17% of interest (...)
National Dialogue on Kenyan Debts Must be Preceded by Citizen’s Debt Audit

10 September 2018 - by David Calleb Otieno

The Kenyan Peasants League (KPL) in collaboration with the Kenyan Social Movements for Abolition of Illegitimate Debts welcome the announcement by National Super Alliance (NASA) leaders Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka calling for a national dialogue on Kenyan debts that is already (...)
Kenya Should Ignore IMF Reform Package and Stop Repaying Debts

19 August 2018 - by David Calleb Otieno

The Kenyan Peasants League (KPL), a member of the La Via Campesina (LVC) is concerned about the reform package being pushed down the throat of Kenyan government by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that is already having adverse impacts on Kenyan citizens who are expected to pay more for (...)
“Stop Repaying Illegitimate Debt”

4 May 2018 - by Eric Toussaint, Amra Ismail

While in Colombo, Sri Lanka, for the 7th CADTM South Asia workshop in April, Éric Toussaint was interviewed by the Daily Mirror, a major Sri Lankan daily newspaper. He answered questions on illegitimate debts, China’s Belt and Road Initiative, cancellation or non-repayment of public and private (...)
Powering the Plunder: What Morocco and Siemens are hiding at COP22, Marrakech

7 November 2016 - by Western Sahara Ressource Watch

At COP22, beware of what you read about Morocco’s renewable energy efforts. An increasing part of the projects take place in the occupied territory of Western Sahara and is used for mineral plunder, new WSRW report documents. An increasing part of the renewable energy programmes that Morocco (...)
Say NO to ‘climate loan’

Adverse impacts of global warming and subsequent climate change are already been apparent with an increase in frequency and intensity of climate induced extreme events. People’s lives and livelihoods, especially of poor and marginalized social groups such as farmers, indigenous communities, (...)
CADTM present in the International University of Peace

22 July 2010 - by Daniel Munevar

During these past few days the XXV edition of the International University of Peace took place in Sant Cugat del Valle, on the outskirts of Barcelona. This project came about in 1984 with the aim of creating the conditions and providing the tools necessary to foster debate, reflection and (...)
Cancellation Of The External Debt And Recognition Of The Ecological Debt

6 June 2009 - by Sajida Hussein

The debt owed by poor countries to the IMF and World Bank is crippling, and very often comes at the expense of essential investments in people such as education, health care and environmental services. Some African countries, for example, spend an average of $US14 per person each year on (...)
The Debt in Figures

27 February 2009 - by Eric Toussaint, Damien Millet

A necessary tool to understand the current global crisis, the data collected here by Damien Millet and Eric Toussaint (CADTM) should enable us to make sense of one of the basic reasons for the international situation, as seen from the viewpoint of the global South. From the 1960s to today’s (...)
Bhutan political crisis, Debt scenario and International Financial Institution

15 January 2009 - by Mohan Tamang

Presented by Mohan Tamang, Democratic Youth of Bhutan, 15th Jan 2009
G20: an inconsistent script to be thoroughly rewritten

17 November 2008 - by Eric Toussaint, Damien Millet

The G20 summit that brought together major industrialised and emergent countries in Washington on 15 November 2008 is a dismal failure. The international financial crisis is deep indeed, stock markets lost close to 40% of their capitalisation in October 2008, financial markets are awaiting (...)
Developing countries: dangerous times for the internal public debt

11 October 2008 - by Eric Toussaint

Since the second half of the 1990s, the internal public debt of the world’s developing countries has increased significantly. This increase is now reaching alarming proportions in a number of middle-income countries. While some very poor countries have not yet been affected, the historical trend (...)
Financial debt and sovereignty in the Constitution of 2008

THE DEBT IN THE CONSTITUTION PROPOSAL TO THE NATIONAL CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY REGARDING THE DEBT AND FINANCIAL SOVEREIGNTY (February 2008) GENERAL THOUGHTS During the long neoliberal period, the foreign debt and the indebtedness system in general were used as tools to impose an economic (...)
Resolution of support for Ecuadorian Debt Audit

The undersigned participants in the First South-North Study and Strategy Meeting of the International Campaign on Illegitimate Debt, representing 50 global and regional networks and organizations from 36 countries from throughout the world, meeting in Quito, Ecuador, on September 9 – 15, 2008, (...)
PAPDA again calls for the unconditional cancellation of Haiti’s debt, and calls on the Haitian authorities to use the debt payments for the hundreds of thousands of victims of recent storms and floods

19 September 2008 - by Camille Chalmers

Port-au-Prince, 10 September 2008 - (AHP) - The secretary-general of the Haitian Platform to Advocate for Alternative Development (PAPDA), Camille Chalmers, has pleaded again for international donors to unconditionally cancel Haiti’s external debt. Camille Chalmers feels that is logical (...)
Third World: is another debt crisis in the offing?

12 September 2008 - by Eric Toussaint

September 2008 While taking a significant toll on public revenues, repayment of the public debt has, since 2004, ceased to be a major concern for most middle-revenue countries and for raw material exporting countries in general. In fact the majority of governments of these countries are (...)
Brazilian Public Debt: Who ows who?

30 July 2008 - by Gabriel Strautman

Gabriel Strautman is an economist of the Institute of Alternative Policies for the Southern Cone (PACS), member of the Brazilian Network on Multilateral Financial Institutions and of the Jubilee South Network. The recent announcement of Brazil’s upgrade to the net external creditor position – (...)
Natural Resources are the Common Goods of Humanity

20 July 2008 - by CADTM

Controlling the use of natural resources is one of the major concerns of all governments. However, large quantities of these natural resources are found in countries of the South (oil, metals, diamond, timber, etc.) and thus attract the great powers, such as the US, the EU or China, who have an (...)
The triple failing of the big private banks

18 March 2008 - by Eric Toussaint, Damien Millet

Since August 2007, US and European banks have constantly made headline news concerning the deep crisis they are going through and its knock-on effect on the neoliberal economic system as a whole. Asset depreciation for these banks currently stands at over 200 billion dollars. Several banking (...)
Debt and challenges to South Asia

10 March 2008 - by Abdul Khaliq

Debt has become the most important problem for the countries of the developing world. The nations that are the poorest in the world are also the most highly indebted. There cannot be any doubt in the minds of economists, sociologists, political scientists or the general public that debt has (...)
External debt: a false sense of achievement

By Yousuf Nazar PAKISTAN’s official external debt has not gone down since 1999 although it has received record aid, investments, and remittances flows. It has gone up to $36.9 billion from $33.6 billion in 1999 despite receiving at least $10 billion in economic, military and development aid (...)
“Ethics and Debt: A view from the International Debtor side”

18 January 2008 - by Oscar Ugarteche Galarza

The UNCTAD Sixth Inter regional Debt Management Conference was held from 19 to 21 November 2007 in Geneva. Oscar Ugarteche, among others civil society representatives, participated in that conference. His paper, entitled “Ethics and Debt: A view from the International Debtor side”, stated that (...)
The International Situation and the Debt : The new challenges facing CADTM

27 August 2007 - by Eric Toussaint

Increase in foreign exchange reserves Since 2004, the economic situation has been characterised by the high price of raw materials and a number of agricultural products. This has allowed a large number of developing countries to increase their export revenues and accumulate significant (...)
Brazil prepares Plebiscite on Debt and Privatizations

19 August 2007 - by Jubilee South-Americas

Brazil : Popular referendum on Public Debt and Privatizations Jubilee South Brazil continues its struggle against the illegitimate debt on several fronts: the Citizens’ Debt Audit, training courses on the budget, and in particular the popular referendum to be held next September 1 to 7, (...)