WASHINGTON - The World Bank has urged G20 countries to extend the debt relief of poor countries until the end of 2021 in order to reduce their burdens amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
“At the [International Monetary Fund/IMF-World Bank Group] Spring Meetings this year, I proposed, along with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, that G20 official bilateral creditors suspend collection of debt-service payments from the poorest countries,” World Bank Group President David Malpass said in his speech at the 2020 IMF-World Bank Group Annual Meetings, Thursday (15/10).
“Importantly, each G20 government should urge DSSI (Debt Service Suspension Initiative) participation by allthe private creditors under their jurisdiction, and by all their bilateral public sector creditors.”
According to Mr Malpass, more efforts still need to be done to achieve full transparency in terms of government debt and debt-like commitments. Such transparency, he added, has to be embraced by creditors and debtors alike to achieve long-term debt sustainability.
“For the poorest countries, creditors and debtors alike should embrace this transparency in order to work quickly toward long-term debt sustainability—that’s in everyone’s interest,” he said. (MS)