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WORLD BANK BACKGROUND GUIDE
PREPARED BY
Mr. LEE Howon
Chairperson World Bank-RomeMUN 2013
and
Mr. SPROCCATI Giacomo
Director World Bank-RomeMUN 2013
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CONTENTS
World Bank BACKGROUND Guide .................................................................................................................................. 1
PRESENTATION CHAIRPERSON AND DIRECTOR-WORLD BANK-ROMEMUN 2013 ......................................................... 3
Council Information................................................................................................................................................... 6
MDG Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................... 7
TOPIC A-TARGET 8.A ...................................................................................................................................................... 9
Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and financial system ...................... 9
A Unique Theoretical Answer? : ............................................................................................................................... 10
An Unequal Access to Markets Where Does the Problem Lie? : ........................................................................... 11
The Specific Case of Agricultural Tariffs How to Create Better Conditions? : ....................................................... 14
Potential Solutions and the Path Forward ............................................................................................................... 16
TOPIC B-TARGET 8.D .................................................................................................................................................... 18
Deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries ................................................................ 18
LAST DEVELOPMENT ON THE ISSUE AT THE UNITED NATIONS ............................................................................... 21
MDG 8.D AND WORLD BANK ................................................................................................................................... 31
Two step process .................................................................................................................................................. 33
Debt relief frees up resources for social spending ............................................................................................... 34
IMF debt relief complemented by other sources ................................................................................................ 35
Challenges remain ................................................................................................................................................ 35
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................................................................. 38
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PRESENTATION CHAIRPERSON AND DIRECTOR-WORLD BANK-ROMEMUN
2013
Chair - HOWON LEE- [email protected]
Ladies and gentlemen, My name is Howon Lee from Palo Alto, California! Im currently doing my
studies in a triple degree program with Sciences Po Paris, Columbia University and the
Universit Pierre et Marie Curie, majoring in economics, law, and biochemistry, and later hope
to enter intellectual property law. As for MUN, my career began at the beginning of high school
and since I have attended nearly 20 conferences from Berkeley to Brussels. This year, I look
forward to being your chair in the World Bank at RomeMUN 2013 and to a great week of debate
on MDG 8! All the best for the upcoming RomeMUN 2013 Conference!
Director - GIACOMO SPROCCATI- [email protected]
My name is Giacomo Sproccati and Im a student at the University of Milan since September
2012. I have taken part in the first Model United Nations conference in 2009 at Bocconi
University and I remained so enthusiastic about it that I had continued it for 4 remaining years
at high school. After MilanMUN I have participated in many other conferences such as GeMUN,
RRSMUN, PAMUN and others. I started as a delegate and I experienced different committees,
but in February 2011 in Genoa I was a deputy chair for the first time. My last year has definitelybeen the most successful one: I was President of the DevCom at GeMUN and Secretary General
in MilanMUN 2012. In 2010 I was given the fantastic opportunity to take part in the MUN
conference for university students in Milan as the Conference Manager Assistant although I was
attending the third year of high-school. It has been really an interesting experience, it gave me
the chance to come closer to a different reality. Another very different experience happened to
me a month ago when I took a group of students to an MUN conference in Chennai, India, as
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the second chaperone of the group. Moreover, in GeMUN 2013 Im going to be a chair in the
Economic and Financial Committee. As far as my interests are concerned Im a person who
enjoys dancing hip-hop and spending time with other people, especially if they come from
abroad. I also appreciate a lot traveling, skiing and listening to music.
VERY IMPORTANT: PLEASE REMIND THAT EACH COUNTRY HAS TO
PRESENT A COPY OF THE POSITION PAPER ABOUT THE TWO AGENDA
TOPICS OF THIS COMMITTEE BY MARCH 1ST
, EMAILING IT AS
ATTACHMENT IN WORD FORMAT TO [email protected]
ALL THE INDICATIONS ABOUT HOW TO PREPARE A POSITION PAPER IS
NOT IN THIS GUIDE BUT IN THE DELEGATE GUIDE (AVAILABLE ON
ROMEMUN FORUM)
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COUNTRIES REPRESENTED AT THEWORLD BANK IN ROMEMUN 2013
EDITION
Afghanistan Nigeria
Argentina Norway
Armenia Pakistan
Australia Peru
Azerbaijan Philippines
Bangladesh Poland
Belgium Portugal
Bolivia QatarBrazil Romania
Canada Russian Federation
China Rwanda
France Saudi Arabia
Georgia Senegal
Guatemala Serbia
India Sierra Leone
Indonesia Singapore
Iran South Africa
Iraq SpainIsrael Sri Lanka
Italy Sudan
Japan Sweden
Kenya Syria
Latvia The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Lebanon Togo
Libya Turkey
Luxembourg Ukraine
Malaysia United Arab Emirates
Mauritania United KingdomMexico United States
Mongolia Uzbekistan
Morocco Zimbabwe
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
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COUNCIL INFORMATION
The World Bank (WB) was founded at the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944 with the goal of
helping countries rebuild after World War II. Its first loan was one of $250 million to France,
after a stringent application process, which also required France to remove all communist
elements from its government. However, the subsequent Marshall Plan forced the World Bank
to loosen its requirements for lending and also expand its territorial focus.
The World Bank today now has a completely different face and it has transferred its focus from
reconstruction to poverty reduction as the overarching goal. It is now part of the World Bank
Group (WBG), which encompasses the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
(IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation
(IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Settlement
of Investment Disputes (ICSID). The World Bank should not be confused with the WBG as the
World Bank itself only comprises the IBRD and the IDA. The World Banks headquarters are
located in Washington, D.C., although it has personnel working all over the world and its current
president is Jim Yong Kim, former President of Dartmouth College.
As the World Bank, we will be looking at how to tackle both Millennium Development Goals
(MDG) 8A and 8D. Although we will be following RomeMUNs rules of procedure, the World
Bank has mandates different from UN organs. Its main means of action is through loans and
grants via the IBRD (more focused on middle-income developing countries) and the IDA
(focused on the worlds poorest developing countries), but it can also call for assistance and aid
to any of the other three WBG institutions and advise global economic policy. It will be up to
delegates, what will be the necessary measures to solve the crisis at hand.
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MDG INTRODUCTION
In 2000, at the UN headquarters in New York, took place the Millennium Summit, a meeting
that saw 189 nations present. The conclusion of this reunion was an agreement: make the world
a better and more equal place for each inhabitant, especially for the less privileged. In order to
formalize this decision, the assembly created the United Nations Millennium Declaration, a
document composed by 8 different achievements, defined as Millennium Development Goals,
to be carried out by the year 2015. Moreover, its important to underline that each goal is
divided into targets, they can vary from one to four but their aim is always the same: increase
the effectiveness. The MDGs are the symbol of the willingness of many nations step forward
significantly and its fundamental to bear in mind that this initiative will come true just if
everyone put as much commitment as they can in it. Lets analyze briefly each goal:
1. Eradicating extreme poverty and hunger: this doesnt only mean improving food safetyand food security but also incrementing jobs in the poorest countries.
2. Achieving universal primary education: make sure that every child of both genders isable to complete the primary school.
3. Promote gender equality and empower women: starting from the school, at thebeginning at the lower levels (primary and middle) and then at the higher, eliminating
gender dissimilarity. In addition making sure that the presence of women increases
under every aspect of our life.
4. Reduce child mortality rates: deflate the number of under-five death children andfighting against illnesses such as measles.
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5. Improve maternal health: with this goal, on one hand, maternal mortality ratio willdecrease and on the other, will raise universally the access to the reproductive health
which means contraceptives and any other kind of support related to the topic.
6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases: in order to do it its important to giveaccess to cure to these illnesses and prevent them through knowledge and condoms.
7. Ensure environmental sustainability: making sure that every nation adopts the principlessustainable development in their policies and reduce by 50% the portion of population
that doesnt have access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation.
8. Develop a global partnership for development: this goal aims at the creation of a newtrading and financial system that will be more open, rule-based, predictable and non-
discriminatory; cooperating with pharmaceutical in order to guarantee access to basic
drugs with affordable costs; working for making usable the benefits of new technology,
especially in the fields of information and communication, with the participation of the
private sector; dealing worldwide with debt problems in the developing countries in
order to turn debt into reasonable in long term thanks to national and international
policies.
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TOPIC A-TARGET 8.A
DEVELOP FURTHER AN OPEN, RULE-BASED, PREDICTABLE, NON-DISCRIMINATORY TRADING
AND FINANCIAL SYSTEM
During this committee session, the World Bank will tackle Millennium Development Goal (MDG)
8, which seeks to develop a global partnership for development. The first topic will cover MDG
8A, which, more precisely, seeks to develop further an open, rule-based, predictable,nondiscriminatory trading and financial system, where developing countries gain greater
access to the markets of developed countries and least developed countries benefit most from
tariff reductions, especially on their agricultural products.1
The World Bank, which has long been
a proponent of an open market, must now look to see how it can further help the current
situation. The World Bank has notably identified five factors to strengthen a global partnership:
promoting debt relief, developing IT infrastructure, expanding trade agreements, improving
access to affordable drugs, and increasing poverty-reducing expenditures.
2
Of course, not all arepertinent to MDG 8A and delegates must decide those that are necessary to fulfill MDG 8A.
It is important to remember that the World Bank does not function in the same manner as UN
organs. Thanks to the World Banks collaboration with multilateral and local partners, actors
often look towards to the World Bank to quicken progress towards the realization of MDG 8.
Delegates will have to be able to balance the traditional World Bank poverty reduction
strategies (country-specific focus) and the international policy necessary within the context of
RomeMUN 2013.
1"A Global Partnership for Development." Millennium Development Goals. United Nations Development
Programme. http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/mdgoverview/mdg_goals/mdg8/.2"Develop a Global Partnership for Development by 2015." The World Bank. The World Bank Group.
http://www.worldbank.org/mdgs/global_partnership.html.
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A UNIQUE THEORETICAL ANSWER? :
Development economics is a relatively new field of economics, finding its roots during the
industrialization of Eastern Europe after World War II. Early theories based their analyses on
Europe and the United States, which led to the failure of certain early theories, such as the
linear-stages-of-growth model, which placed too much importance on capital accumulation as a
factor of development. As a result the application of theories such as Rostows stages of
economic growth (1960) and the Harrod-Domar Growth model (1947) often failed to materialize
in less economically developed countries (LDCs). Furthermore, the Lewis model, which sought to
describe the structural change from a traditional subsistence agricultural economy to a more
modern industrial economy. However, this often neglected the agricultural sector, which, if
applied today, would have devastating effects worldwide, and is notably important when
looking at agricultural imports. Nonetheless, development economics soon expanded to include
Africa, Asia, and Latin America, the regions of the world that require our focus, and have
updated to take into account the factors of todays globalized world.3
The subsequent international dependency (1970s) and neoclassical theories (1980s) took into
account some of the specificities of globalization, but failed to deliver an empirical
substantiation of development economics. Even the current New Growth Model and the Big
Push (or Rosenstein-Rodan) Model fail to curry wide scale approval. The only consensus that
seems to appear is that there is no universally accepted or applicable paradigm, meaning that
further analysis is required as we move forward in our debate. It is therefore essential to
identify the strengths and weaknesses of any proposals put forward by the World Bank and to
3Poncet, Sandra. "Classic Theories of Economic Development." Lecture. Development Economics. Sciences Po,
Paris. http://ces.univ-paris1.fr/membre/Poncet/SciencesPo/Lecture%202%20seminar.pdf.
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ensure that a regional approach is considered to avoid the pitfalls that a Universalist approach
could bring.4
AN UNEQUAL ACCESS TO MARKETS WHERE DOES THE PROBLEM LIE? :
The first target of MDG 8A is to help developing countries gain greater access to the markets of
developed countries. Huge progress has been made in the past two decades, notably in
Southeast Asia, where countries have been able to create a strong export economy, but many
parts of Africa fail to be able to profit from the advantages of a globalized economy. However, it
is important to note that this not mean in any way that LDCs are detached from the boom and
bust cycles of developed nations, and during the financial crisis of 2007-2008, suffered greater
consequences than developed nations (view graph below). For example, growth in Kenya
dropped from 7% in 2007 to 3-4% in 2009.5
5 (Graph p. 2)
4Poncet, Sandra. "Contemporary Theories of Economic Development." Development Economics. Sciences Po, Paris.
http://ces.univ-paris1.fr/membre/Poncet/SciencesPo/Lecture%203%20seminar.pdf.5Willem Te Velde, Dirk. "The Global Financial Crisis and Developing Countries: Taking Stock, Taking
Action." Overseas Development Institute (September, 2009). http://www.odi.org.uk/sites/odi.org.uk/files/odi-
assets/publications-opinion-files/3705.pdf.
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Nonetheless, world trade bounced back from the collapse and developing countries especially
developing countries, whose value of exports now surpasses pre-crisis levels. And despite fears
of a return to protectionism, interest groups seeking a renewed nationalism had extremely
limited success. Yet the situation is clearly not all hearts and flowers as the Doha Development
Round or Doha Development Agenda, which began in November 2001, has still failed to bring
about any coherent policy changes despite early successes on access to patented medicines and
TRIPS. Major differences exist between the two major blocs, developed nations led by EU, USA,
Japan and developing nations led by Brazil, China, India, South Korea, and South Africa, on all
issues of market access within the DDA: agriculture, services, and NAMA (Non-Agricultural
Market Access).6
The unwillingness of developed nations to eliminate or even lower tariffs
demonstrates a will to protect their own economies over the development of LDCs (c.f. next
section on agricultural tariffs).
This is apparent when looking at the proportion of LDCs benefitting from true preferential trade
with richer nations. Although the percentage of LDCs benefiting from either duty-free under
true preference or under most favored nation treatment (MFN)7
has steadily increased in the
past two decades (see graph below), it has not necessarily helped or given an advantage to
LDCs.
6Fergusson, Ian F. World Trade Organization Negotiations the Doha Development Agenda. US Congress,
Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service (Order Code RL32060), Library of Congress, 2012.
http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/assets/crs/RL32060.pdf.7For more information on MFN, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Most_favored_nation.
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8 (Graph p. 62)
This clear upward trend has created a truly preferential regime for developing and LDCs. 8 The
World Trade Organization (WTO), which encompasses over 95% of all trade, requires under
article I:1 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)9
that WTO members grant
MFN treatment immediately and unconditionally to the like products of other members with
respect to custom duties and import charges, internal taxes and regulations, and other trade-
related matters. However, regional preference schemes such as the Caribbean Basin Economic
Recovery Act (CBERA)10
, the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA) and the African Growth and
Opportunity Act (AGOA)11
, and the 1999 Preferential Tariff Treatment for LDCs waive or modify
GATT Article I:1, which greatly benefit LDCs.12 However, non-LDC developing countries often
8The Millennium Development Goals Report 2012. United Nations Publications, 2012.
http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/MDG/english/The_MDG_Report_2012.pdf.9
For more information on GATT, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Agreement_on_Tariffs_and_Trade. Full
text can be found at http://www.wto.org/english/docs_e/legal_e/gatt47_01_e.htm (GATT 1947) and
http://www.wto.org/english/docs_e/legal_e/06-gatt_e.htm (GATT 1994, must be read with GATT 1947).10
Permanent in the USA until 2020 (Grimmett, p. 7)11
Authorized in the USA until 2015 (Grimmett, p. 7)12
Grimmett, Jeanne, J. Trade Preferences for Developing Countries and the WTO. US Congress. Washington, D.C.:
Congressional Research Service (RS22183), Library of Congress, 2007.
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RS22183.pdf.
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only have access to markets free of duty because that product is no longer taxed under the MFN
regime.13
THE SPECIFIC CASE OF AGRICULTURAL TARIFFS HOW TO CREATE BETTER CONDITIONS? :
Reductions of agricultural tariffs remain one of the most important goals for developing
countries and it has been evident throughout the Doha Round. Although a generalized
preference plan is preferred, developing countries often lack the infrastructure to take
advantage of a tariff reduction in automobile exports for example, whereas all countries have at
least some sort of agricultural industry. However, agricultural tariffs often do not come in the
form of a duty, but rather subsidies, making them much more difficult to resolve, to the point
that agriculture has become the linchpin of the DDA. Some African countries are even calling for
an end to cotton subsidies in the USA and EU, claiming that these subsidies are destroying the
market for smaller African producers. However, these subsidies are invaluable in their role in
keeping down food prices. A $1 rise in food prices puts 160 million more people in hunger,
whereas a similar drop in food prices has devastating effects on producers.
As with market access, the situation has improved over the past two decades (see graph below),
but tariffs still exist. The blockade in the DDA today demonstrates a certain unwillingness to
enter a completely liberalized agricultural market (mainly due to powerful pressure from
farmers at home).14
Nonetheless, there is a general agreement that agricultural subsidies must
be eliminated, seen by the pledge by WTO members to eliminate export subsidies and export
measures with equivalent effect by 2013 during the December 2005 Hong Kong Ministerial. A
three band methodology was undertaken, where the EU occupied the highest band, the USA
13Graph explained in greater detail in source 8, p. 62. More information on Preference Programs through the USTR
can be found at http://www.ustr.gov/trade-topics/trade-development/preference-programs.14
The approximate position of each caucus bloc can be found in CRS RL33144 (WTO Doha Round: The Agricultural
Negotiations by Charles E. Hanrahan and Randy Schnepf) pages 13-21 at
http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/assets/crs/RL33144.pdf.
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and Japan the second band, and lesser subsidizing countries in the third, with tariff decreases
negotiated in a later round.15,16
8 (Graph p. 63)
However, despite what critics say, the lowering or elimination of agricultural tariffs is not a
charity performed unto developing nations. Multiple studies forecast an increase of global
welfare if the DDA were to be successful in reducing budget cuts. A study by the University of
Michigan even predicts an increase of $574 billion if all trade barriers in agriculture, services,
15Developed country tariffs would be cut in a tiered formula in equal increments over five years: a 70% reduction
for tariffs currently above 75%, a 64% cut for tariffs currently between 50% and75%, a 57% cut for tariffs currently
between 20% and 50% and a 50% cut for tariffs between 0 and 20%. In addition, the draft stipulates a minimum
tariff cutof 54% for developed countries, after application of the formula and other exceptions. Developing
countries would be able to cut two-thirds of the amount of cuts agreed by developed countries from bands with
higher thresholds in equal installments over 10 years. (Fergusson. World Trade Organization Negotiations: The
Doha Development Agenda, p. 12-13)16
Fergusson, Ian F. World Trade Organization Negotiations the Doha Development Agenda. US Congress,
Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service (Order Code RL32060), Library of Congress, 2012.
http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/assets/crs/RL32060.pdf.
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and manufactures were reduced by 33% due to the DDA,17
but more modest predictions vary
from $84 billion to $287 billion by the year 2015.18
The multilateral negotiations of the WTO are
especially important since they include developing countries that are sometimes left out of a
regional or bilateral trade agreement.
POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS AND THE PATH FORWARD
Unfortunately, MDG 8.A presents a difficult area for the World Bank to have a direct impact on,
but this does not mean that it must take a back seat in the issue. The World Banks extensive
network of analysts must be able to identify, which countries would benefit most from an
expansion of preferential treatment or further agricultural tariff reduction. Delegates will have
to negotiate and form blocs to ensure that their countrys position is heard as delegates lobby
for World Bank funds and advantageous policy advising. Convincing proposals can promise loans
for infrastructure necessary to compete in a global market.
Furthermore, when a country opens its markets, increased imports often cause economic
dislocations (much to the ire of many developed countries) at the local or regional level,
resulting in loss of jobs. The countries or regions that experience these sort of losses do not
17Brown, Drusilla K., Deardorff, Alan V. and Robert M. Stern. Computational Analysis of Multilateral
TradeLiberalization in the Uruguay Round and Doha Development Round. Discussion Paper No. 489. School of
PublicPolicy. The University of Michigan. December 8, 2002.18
Thomas W. Hertel and Roman Keeney, What is at Stake: The Relative Importance of Import Barriers, Export
Subsidies and Domestic Support, in Anderson and Martin, eds., Agricultural Trade Reform in the Doha Agenda
(Washington: World Bank, 2005); and Kym Anderson, Will Martin, and Dominique van der Mensbrugge, Doha
Merchandise Trade Reform: Whats At Stake for Developing Countries, July 2005, available at
http://www.worldbank.org/trade/wto. The different outcomes in these studies are due substantially to differing
assumptions concerning liberalization resulting from the Doha Round as well as from differences in the
econometric models themselves. For example, the World Bank studies do not attempt to quantify services
liberalization.
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benefit from the multilateral trade agreements called for in MDG 8.A. As a result, the World
Bank has a crucial role to play in order to be able to mitigate negative externalities.19
Delegates should also look to the potential that exists for developing and least-developed
countries in emerging markets. Possibly easier and more economically beneficial than entering
the highly competitive space within developed nations, the emerging markets, especially that of
the BRICS nations, present a huge opportunity for developing and least-developed countries.20
19Fergusson, Ian F. World Trade Organization Negotiations the Doha Development Agenda. US Congress,
Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service (Order Code RL32060), Library of Congress, 2012.
http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/assets/crs/RL32060.pdf.20
The Millennium Development Goals Report 2012. United Nations Publications, 2012.
http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/MDG/english/The_MDG_Report_2012.pdf.
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TOPIC B-TARGET 8.D
DEAL COMPREHENSIVELY WITH THE DEBT PROBLEMS OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
This year the committee of the World Bank (WB) is called to face the issue of the debt in the
developing countries at RomeMUN. This topic is not just a current but it is really relevant for
the future of the economy on our planet. The issue is pretty vast but it can be developedstarting from few points of interests. The first that we have chosen is the debt. The government
of every nation has to incur expenses, in some states they are higher whereas in others are
lower. In order to cover these costs, the government gets revenue from citizen through taxes
that can be direct, such as the ones paid on wages and enterprises, or indirect, such as the
value-added tax (VAT). When the income coming from taxes is not enough to cover the whole
public expenditure a nations has a deficit to face, which is the situation in which the entries of
the government are lower than the outflows.
Therefore, in this case, a nation has to face further cost and in order to get the money he needs
to do so the government issues state securities, such as BOT for Italy or BUND for Germany, on
which it has to pay interests. These latter contributes to enlarge the expenditures for the
government. The state securities create the public debt of a nation. Therefore, the government
is in a situation in which it needs current assets and the best way to do so is to get them from
sectors in which it is directly involved such as increase taxes on wages, on the VAT and decrease
the funds for public services, which can be school, health or retirements for example. It is
important to underline the fact that the western countries are the subject more afflicted by the
problem of the public debt, as it is possible to notice from the graphic below.
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The history of the past few years has taught that the public debt can be a very dangerous
element and it could be the first cause of a very difficult situation for a country. In Europe the
examples are many, Greece and Italy just to quote few, but the common denominator is that for
different reason the public debt was not given the attention needed and as a consequence the
measures carried out by the governments turned out to be unsuccessful. This situation causedvery bad aftereffects on citizens first of all.
Another relevant element for the topic regards the developing countries. Nowadays the
countries who are considered to be developing ones are the so called BRICS, an acronym that
stands for 5 different nations, such as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
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It is important to point out that South Africa has just recently joined this group of countries who
are considered to be the engine of the world economy in the years to come. These nations met
for the first time in June 2009 (South Africa was excluded from this reunion since it was included
one year later) and agreed on the necessity to find a new global currency that should be
diversified, stable and predictable. The BRICS are associated by few elements: the largest
amount of population on the planet, according to the CIA World Factbook currently the first two
countries with the higher population rate are respectively China and India, the factor of the
population is really important since theres a great internal request which is a factor that
contributes to the growth of the Gross Domestic Product(GDP), which means economic growth;
vast geographic territory that gives the chance to have access to a great quantity of natural
resources. The forecasts in the years to come indicate that both China and India will be the two
nations leading the growth process in the economy worldwide, as the following graphic states.
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LAST DEVELOPMENT ON THE ISSUE AT THE UNITED NATIONS
The United Nations deals with this issues many times in different summits and by different UN
agencies and committees, the following is the list of some of the most important meetings and
resolutions approved about the MGD8, target D:
Resolutions 58/203 of 23 December 200321,
59/223 of 22 December 2004
22
,
60/187 of 22 December 200523,
61/188 of 20 December 200624
,
62/186 of 19 December 200725
,
63/206 of 19 December 200826
,
64/191 of 21 December 200927,
65/144 of 20 December 201028
,
66/189 of 22 December 201129
,
United Nations Millennium Declaration, adopted on 8 September 2000,
Resolution 57/270 B of 23 June 2003,
21http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/RES/58/230
22http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/59/223&Lang=E
23http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/60/187
24http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/RES/61/188
25http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/RES/62/186
26http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/63/206&Lang=E
27http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/64/191&Lang=E
28http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/65/144&Lang=E
29http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/res/66/189&Lang=E
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resolution 60/265 of 30 June 2006
The International Conference on Financing for Development30 and its outcome document and
the Doha Declaration on Financing for Development31: outcome document of the Follow-up
International Conference on Financing for Development to Review the Implementation of the
Monterrey Consensus32
,
The Conference on the World Financial and Economic Crisis and Its Impact on Development33
and its outcome document,
The High-level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly on the Millennium Development
Goals34
and its outcome document,
The Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries35
and the Istanbul
Declaration and the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade
2011-202036
,
The Conference on Sustainable Development, held in Rio de Janeiro37
, Brazil, from 20 to 22
June 2012, and its outcome document, entitled The future we want38
.
Recalling all those principles and measures approved and discussed in the above meetings and
resolutions the General Assembly (second committee-economic and financial) discussed last
December 2012 the resolution A/67/435/Add.3 which gives us a general idea of the issued as
deal by the UN:
1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General;
30http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/ffdconf/
31http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/doha/documents/Doha_Declaration_FFD.pdf
32http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/
33http://www.un.org/ga/econcrisissummit/
34http://www.un-ngls.org/spip.php?page=amdg10&id_article=2233
35http://www.un.org/wcm/content/site/ldc/home
36http://www.wfp.org/content/istanbul-programme-action-least-developed-countries-decade-2011-2020
37http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=42281#.UPAB4W_aWWY
38http://www.un.org/en/sustainablefuture/pdf/rio20%20concludes_press%20release.pdf
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2. Emphasizes the special importance of a timely, effective, comprehensive and durablesolution to the debt problems of developing countries to promote their economic
growth and development;
3. Stresses the importance of responsible lending and borrowing, emphasizes that creditorsand debtors must share responsibility for preventing unsustainable debt situations, and
encourages Member States, the Bretton Woods institutions, the regional development
banks and other relevant multilateral financial institutions and stakeholders to continue
the ongoing discussions on this issue, inter alia, within the framework of the initiative of
the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, in order to articulate and
promote principles of responsible sovereign lending and borrowing;
4. Acknowledges the role played by the Debt Sustainability Framework for Low-IncomeCountries, jointly developed by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, to
guide borrowing and lending decisions, and encourages continued review of the
Framework in an open and transparent manner, with the full engagement of borrower
Governments;
5. Reiterates that no single indicator should be used to make definitive judgments about acountrys debt sustainability, and, in this regard, while acknowledging the need to use
transparent and comparable indicators, invites the International Monetary Fund and the
World Bank, in their assessment of debt sustainability, to continue to take into account
fundamental changes caused by, inter alia, natural disasters, conflicts and changes in
global growth prospects or in the terms of trade, especially for commodity-dependent
developing countries, as well as by the impact of developments in financial markets, and
to provide information on this issue to Member States, using the appropriate
frameworks;
6. Recognizes that the long-term sustainability of debt depends on, inter alia, economicgrowth, mobilization of domestic and international resources, export prospects of
debtor countries, responsible debt management, sound macroeconomic policies,
transparent and effective regulatory frameworks and success in overcoming structural
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development problems, and hence on the creation of an enabling international
environment that is conducive to development;
7. Also recognizes the enormity and the multidimensional nature of the world financial andeconomic crisis, which caused a sharp deterioration of the debt ratios in several
developing countries, stresses the need to continue to assist developing countries in
avoiding a build-up of unsustainable debt so as to reduce the risk of relapsing into
another debt crisis, takes note in this regard of the additional resources made available
during and since the crisis through the International Monetary Fund and the multilateral
development banks, and calls for the continued provision of concessional and grant-
based financing to low-income countries to enable them to respond to the
consequences of the crisis;
8. Further recognizes the roles of the United Nations and the international financialinstitutions in accordance with their respective mandates, and encourages them to
continue to support global efforts towards sustained, inclusive and equitable growth,
sustainable development and the external debt sustainability of developing countries,
including through continued monitoring of global financial flows and their implications in
this regard;
9. Emphasizes the need for coordinated policies aimed at fostering debt financing, debtrelief and debt restructuring, recalls, in this regard, the improvement of the lending
framework of the International Monetary Fund through, inter alia, streamlined
conditions and the creation of more flexible instruments, such as a precautionary and
liquidity line, while noting that new and ongoing programmes should not contain
unwarranted procyclical conditionalities, and urges the multilateral development banks
to continue to move forward on flexible, concessional, fast disbursing and front-loaded
assistance that will substantially and quickly assist developing countries facing financing
gaps in their efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, taking into
consideration the individual absorptive capacities and debt sustainability of those
countries;
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10.Notes the provision by the International Monetary Fund of interest relief to low-incomecountries in the form of zero-interest payments on financing from concessional lending
facilities until the end of 2012, and invites the Fund to consider extending its
concessional loan facilities for lowincome countries for the post-2012 period;
11.Also notes that countries can seek to negotiate, as a last resort, on a case-by-case basisand through existing frameworks, agreements on temporary debt standstills between
debtors and creditors in order to help mitigate the adverse impacts of the crisis and
stabilize macroeconomic developments;
12.Further notes the progress made under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiativeand the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative, while expressing concern that some countries
have yet to reach decision or completion points, calls for the full and timely
implementation of those Initiatives and for continued support to the remaining eligible
countries in completing the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative process, and
encourages all parties, both creditors and debtors, to fulfil their commitments as rapidly
as possible in order to complete the debt relief process;
13. Welcomes and encourages the efforts of the heavily indebted poor countries, calls uponthem to continue to promote economic growth and poverty eradication, and invites the
international financing institutions and the donor community to continue to provide
adequate and sufficiently concessional financing;
14.Encourages the international financial institutions to review the implementation and theimpact of debt relief initiatives to better understand why some countries still face
persisting debt problems after completion of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries
Initiative, and calls for the design of strategies to address them;
15.Underlines the fact that heavily indebted poor countries eligible for debt relief will notbe able to enjoy its full benefits unless all creditors, both public and private, contribute
their fair share and become involved in the international debt resolution mechanisms to
ensure the debt sustainability of those countries, and invites creditors, both private and
public, that are not yet fully participating in debt relief initiatives to substantially
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increase their participation, including through providing comparable treatment to the
extent possible to debtor countries that have concluded sustainable debt relief
agreements with creditors;
16.Stresses that debt relief can play a key role in liberating resources that should bedirected towards activities consistent with poverty eradication, sustained economic
growth, economic development and the internationally agreed development goals,
including the Millennium Development Goals, and in this regard urges countries to direct
the resources freed through debt relief, in particular through debt cancellation and
reduction, towards achieving those objectives, including in the context of the
development agenda beyond 2015, according to their national priorities and strategies;
17.Encourages donor countries to take steps to ensure that resources provided for debtrelief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative and the Multilateral Debt
Relief Initiative do not detract from official development assistance resources intended
for developing countries;
18.Also encourages donor countries to uphold their international aid commitments, asofficial development assistance constitutes an important source of financing for
developing countries to pursue the objectives outlined under the Millennium
Development Goals and other internationally agreed development goals, recognizing
that official development assistance can also help countries to weather the negative
effects of the global financial and economic crisis on trade, investment, debt servicing,
remittances exchange rate volatility and capital flows;
19.Notes with concern that some low- and middle-income developing countries that havenot been eligible to benefit from existing debt relief initiatives may have large debt
burdens that may create constraints on mobilizing the resources needed to achieve the
internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals,
indicating the need to design debt relief initiatives for those countries, and encourages
the consideration of medium- and long-term sustainability as well as new approaches to
deal with bilateral and private non-Paris Club debt; A/6
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20.Encourages the Paris Club, in dealing with the debt of low- and middle-income debtorcountries that are not part of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative, to take into
account their medium-term debt sustainability in addition to their financing gaps, and
notes with appreciation the Evian approach of the Paris Club in providing different terms
of debt relief in order to respond to the specific needs of debtor countries while
preserving debt cancellation for heavily indebted poor countries;
21.Stresses the need for the international community to remain vigilant in monitoring thedebt situation of the least developed countries and to continue to take effective
measures to address the debt problem of those countries, including through the
cancellation of the multilateral and bilateral debt owed by least developed countries to
creditors, both public and private;
22.Welcomes the efforts of and calls upon the international community to continue toprovide flexibility, and stresses the need to sustain those efforts in helping post-conflict
developing countries, especially those that are heavily indebted and poor, to achieve
initial reconstruction for economic and social development;
23.Also welcomes the efforts of and invites creditors to provide flexibility to developingcountries affected by natural disasters so as to allow them to address their debt
concerns, while taking into account their specific situations and needs;
24.Calls for the consideration of additional measures and initiatives aimed at ensuring long-term debt sustainability through increased grant-based and other forms of concessional
financing, the cancellation of 100 per cent of the eligible official multilateral and bilateral
debt of heavily indebted poor countries and, where appropriate and on a case-by-case
basis, significant debt relief or restructuring for developing countries with an
unsustainable debt burden that are not part of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries
Initiative;
25.Invites donor countries, taking into account country-specific debt sustainabilityanalyses, to continue their efforts to increase bilateral grants to developing countries,
which could contribute to debt sustainability in the medium to long term, and recognizes
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the need for countries to be able to promote employment and productive investment
and to invest in, inter alia, health and education while maintaining debt sustainability;
26.Calls for the intensification of efforts to prevent and mitigate the prevalence and cost ofdebt crises by enhancing international financial mechanisms for crisis prevention and
resolution, encourages the public and the private sectors to cooperate in this regard,
and invites creditors and debtors to further explore, where appropriate and on a
mutually agreed, transparent and case-by-case basis, the use of new and improved debt
instruments and innovative mechanisms such as debt swaps, including debt for equity in
Millennium Development Goal projects, as well as debt indexation instruments;
27.Also calls for the consideration of enhanced approaches to sovereign debt restructuringand debt resolution mechanisms, with due consideration for existing frameworks and
principles, with the broad participation of creditors and debtors, the comparable
treatment of all creditorsand an important role for the Bretton Woods institutions and
other relevant organizations within the United Nations system, and in this regard calls
upon all countries to promote and contribute to the discussions, within the United
Nations and other appropriate forums, on the need for and feasibility of a more
structured framework for international cooperation in this area;
28.Takes note of the key issues identified at the special event of the Second Committee ofthe General Assembly held on the theme Sovereign debt crises and restructurings:
lessons learned and proposals for debt resolution mechanisms, including: the high cost
of debt restructuring for debtors and creditors, and the risks debt problems pose to
global financial stability; the lack of a standing body that can preserve the institutional
memory of debt distress, default and debt restructuring episodes and that, on the basis
of the insights they have provided, can facilitate the smoother treatment of sovereign
debt in the future by providing a venue for information discovery and negotiation; the
need for arrangements for temporary standstill agreements; the need to create
incentives for the early recognition of problems by debtors and the early engagement of
debtors and creditors, the independent assessment of debt sustainability and the ability
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to pay without compromising growth and access to financing; the need for a rules-based
mechanism for debt restructuring and creditor coordination, burden-sharing among
debtors and creditors and the establishment of creditor seniority and the prevention of
litigation and holdouts; and the role of the International Monetary Fund and the private
sector in interim financing with due attention to fiscal multipliers in designing policy
packages for debtors; and encourages the participant institutions and experts to
continue their work on these issues and to propose policy options for the future, as
appropriate;
29.Calls for the establishment of a General Assembly working group, with the participationof all relevant stakeholders, including the multilateral financial institutions, to continue
the study and examination of options for enhanced approaches to debt restructuring
and resolution mechanisms that take into account the multiple dimensions of debt
sustainability;
30.Notes the changing composition of the sovereign debt of some countries, which hasshifted increasingly from official to commercial borrowing and from external to domestic
public debt, although for most low income countries external finance is still largely
official, also notes that the levels of domestic debt and the significantly increased
number of creditors, both official and private, could create other challenges for
macroeconomic management and public debt sustainability, and stresses the need to
address the implications of those changes, including through improved data collection
and analysis;
31.Recognizes concerns about vulture fund litigation and that some debtor countries mayexperience difficulties in obtaining comparable treatment from non-Paris Club creditors,
as required by the standard clause included in Paris Club agreements, and encourages
the continued provision by the relevant institutions of mechanisms and legal assistance
to debtor countries to solve litigation issues;
32.Stresses the need to increase information-sharing, transparency and the use of objectivecriteria in the construction and evaluation of debt A/6 scenarios, including an
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assessment of domestic public and private debt, in order to ensure the achievement of
development goals, recognizes that credit rating agencies play a significant role in the
provision of information, including the assessment of corporate and sovereign risks, and
in this regard reiterates its invitation to the President of the General Assembly to
convene a thematic debate on the role of credit-rating agencies in the international
financial system, and requests the Secretary-General to report on new and ongoing
measures to establish new, or to improve, existing credit-rating agencies and their
capacity to accurately assess the creditworthiness of borrowers;
33.Invites the international community to continue efforts to increase support, includingfinancial and technical assistance, for institutional capacity building in developing
countries to enhance sustainable debt management as an integral part of national
development strategies, including by promoting transparent and accountable debt
management systems and negotiation and renegotiation capacities and through
supporting legal advice in relation to tackling external debt litigation and debt data
reconciliation between creditors and debtors so that debt sustainability may be achieved
and maintained;
34.Invites the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the InternationalMonetary Fund and the World Bank, in cooperation with the regional commissions,
regional development banks and other relevant multilateral financial institutions and
stakeholders, to continue and intensify cooperation in respect of capacity-building
activities in developing countries in the area of debt management and debt
sustainability;
35. Encourages further improvement of the mutual exchange of information, on a voluntarybasis, on borrowing and lending among all creditors and borrowers;
36.Acknowledges that timely and comprehensive data on the level and composition of debtare a condition necessary for, inter alia, building early warning systems aimed at limiting
the impact of debt crises, calls for debtor and creditor countries to intensify their efforts
to collect data, and calls for donors to consider increasing their support for technical
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cooperation programmes aimed at increasing the statistical capacity of developing
countries in that regard;
37.Calls upon all Member States and the United Nations system, and invites the BrettonWoods institutions and the private sector, to take appropriate measures and actions for
the implementation of the commitments, agreements and decisions of the major United
Nations conferences and summits, in particular those related to the question of the
external debt sustainability of developing countries;
38.Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the General Assembly at its sixty-eighthsession a report on the implementation of the present resolution and to include in that
report a comprehensive and substantive analysis of the external debt situation of
developing countries;39
MDG 8.D AND WORLD BANK
We now have a look to what measures the World bank is putting in action forward the
achievement of the MDG 8, target D. In 1996, the World Bank and the International Monetary
Fund launched the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative so that countries
encumbered by debt could get back on their feet. In 2006, the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative
(MDRI) was launched to provide additional resources to HIPCs to meet the MDGs. By June 2010,
$76.4 billion in HIPC debt relief had been committed to 36 countries, of which 30 countries have
received an additional $45.8 billion under the MDRI. MDG 8 also addresses the digital divide.
Studies show that a 10% increase in high-speed Internet connections result in economic growth
of 1.3% in developing countries, yet many people live in rural areas without access or are too
poor to afford it. The World Bank is the largest international funder of information and
communication technology development, currently supporting projects in 95 countries.40
39http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/67/435/Add.3&Lang=E
40From http://www.worldbank.org/mdgs/global_partnership.html
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The main areas of action identify by the World bank are:
1. promoting debt relief2. developing IT infrastructure3. expanding trade agreements4. improving access to affordable drugs5. increasing poverty-reducing expenditures
A multilateral debt relief initiative has been discussed among the WB member states and the G8
countries, in fact at the July 2005 g8 summit in Scotland, leaders proposed to cancel the debt of
the worlds most indebted countries, most of which in Africa. Debt cancellation will be provided
by the IDA of the World Bank, the IMF and the African Development Fund to those countries
that have graduated from the Enhanced heavily indebted poor countries initiative (HIPC)41
.
The HIPC Initiative was 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. Since then, the international
financial community, including multilateral organizations and governments have worked
together to reduce to sustainable levels the external debt burdens of the most heavily indebted
poor countries. In 1999, a comprehensive review of the Initiative allowed the Fund to provide
faster, deeper, and broader debt relief and strengthened the links between debt relief, poverty
reduction, and social policies. In 2005, to help accelerate progress toward the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the HIPC Initiative was supplemented by the
Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI). The MDRI allows for 100 percent relief on eligible debts
by three multilateral institutionsthe IMF, the World Bank, and the African Development Fund
(AfDF)for countries completing the HIPC Initiative process. In 2007, the Inter-American
Development Bank (IaDB) also decided to provide additional (beyond HIPC) debt relief to the
five HIPCs in the Western Hemisphere.42
41http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTDEBTDEPT/0,,contentMDK:20634753~menuPK:641667
39~pagePK:64166689~piPK:64166646~theSitePK:469043,00.html42
http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
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TWO STEP PROCESS43
Countries must meet certain criteria, commit to poverty reduction through policy changes anddemonstrate a good track-record over time. The Fund and Bank provide interim debt relief in the
initial stage, and when a country meets its commitments, full debt-relief is provided.
FIRST STEP: DECISION POINT. To be considered for HIPC Initiative assistance, a country
must fulfill the following four conditions:
1. be eligible to borrow from the World Banks International Development Agency, whichprovides interest-free loans and grants to the worlds poorest countries, and from the IMFs
Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust, which provides loans to low-income countries at subsidized
rates.
2. face an unsustainable debt burden that cannot be addressed through traditional debtrelief mechanisms.
3. have established a track record of reform and sound policies through IMF-and WorldBank supported programs
4. have developed a Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) through a broad-basedparticipatory process in the country.
Once a country has met or made sufficient progress in meeting these four criteria, the Executive
Boards of the IMF and World Bank formally decide on its eligibility for debt relief, and the
international community commits to reducing debt to a level that is considered sustainable. This
first stage under the HIPC Initiative is referred to as the decision point. Once a country reaches its
decision point, it may immediately begin receiving interim relief on its debt service falling due.
SECOND STEP: COMPLETION POINT. In order to receive full and irrevocable reduction in
debt available under the HIPC Initiative, a country must:
1. establish a further track record of good performance under programs supported by loansfrom the IMF and the World Bank.
2. implement satisfactorily key reforms agreed at the decision point.
43http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
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3. adopt and implement its PRSP for at least one year.Once a country has met these criteria, it can reach its completion point, which allows it to receive
the full debt relief committed at the decision point.
Countries receiving debt relief. Of the 39 countries eligible or potentially eligible for HIPC
Initiative assistance, 35 are receiving full debt relief from the IMF and other creditors after
reaching their completion points. One country, Chad, has reached a decision point and has
benefited from interim debt relief. Three countries, which have been identified as potentially
eligible for HIPC Initiative assistance, have not yet reached their decision points.
DEBT RELIEF FREES UP RESOURCES FOR SOCIAL SPENDING44
Debt relief is one part of a much larger effort, which also includes aid flows, to address the
development needs of low-income countries and make sure that debt sustainability is
maintained over time. For debt reduction to have a tangible impact on poverty, the additional
money needs to be spent on programs that benefit the poor.
Boosting social spending. Before the HIPC Initiative, eligible countries were, on average,
spending slightly more on debt service than on health and education combined. Now, they have
increased markedly their expenditures on health, education, and other social services. On
average, such spending is about five times the amount of debt-service payments.
Reducing debt service. For the 36 countries receiving debt relief, debt service paid, on average,
has declined by about two percentage points of GDP between 2001 and 2010. Their debt burden
is expected to be reduced by about 90 percent after the full delivery of debt relief (including
under the MDRI).
Improving public debt management. Debt relief has markedly improved the debt position ofpost-completion point countries, bringing their debt indicators down below those of other HIPCs
or non-HIPCs. However, many remain vulnerable to shocks, particularly those affecting exports
as seen during the current global economic crisis. To reduce their debt vulnerabilities decisively,
44http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
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countries need to pursue cautious borrowing policies and strengthen their public debt
management.
IMF DEBT RELIEF COMPLEMENTED BY OTH ER SOURCES45
About 45 percent of the funding comes from the IMF and other multilateral institutions, and the
remaining amount comes from bilateral creditors.
The total cost of providing assistance to the 39 countries that have been found eligible or
potentially eligible for debt relief under the enhanced HIPC Initiative is estimated to be about
$76 billion in end-2010 net present value terms.
The IMFs share of the cost is financed by bilateral contributions and resources from the Fund
itself, mainly investment income on the proceeds from off-market gold sales in 1999. These
funds were deposited to the IMFs PRG-HIPC Trust. Resources available in the trust are currently
insufficient to finance the cost of debt relief to all countries that meet the initial conditions for
debt relief and reach the decision point. The original financing plan did not include the cost of
debt relief to Sudan and Somalia, as well as to other countries that entered the Initiative after
2006. Should these countries progress to the decision point, there would be an urgent need to
mobilize resources.
CHALLENGES REMAIN
the four countries that have not yet completed the requirements for full debt relief face common
challenges, including preserving peace and stability, and improving governance and the delivery
of basic services. Addressing these challenges will require continued efforts from these countries
to strengthen policies and institutions, and support from the international community.
Another challenge is to ensure that eligible countries get full debt relief from all their creditors.
Although the largest creditors (the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the IMF, the
Inter-American Development Bank, and all Paris Club creditors) have provided their full share of
debt relief under the HIPC Initiative, and even beyond, others are lagging behind. Smaller
45http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
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multilateral institutions, non-Paris Club official bilateral creditors, and commercial creditors,
which together account for about 25 percent of total HIPC Initiative costs, have only delivered a
small share of their expected relief so far. Non-Paris Club bilateral creditors as a whole have
delivered around 40 percent of their share of HIPC Initiative debt relief, but about one third of
these creditors have not delivered any relief at all. While there has been some increase in the
delivery over the past few years, the rate of delivery remains disappointingly low.
The delivery of debt relief by commercial creditors has increased markedly in recent years
through a few large operations supported by IDAs Debt Reduction Facility buyback operations.
Some commercial creditors have initiated litigations against HIPCs, raising significant legal
challenges to burden sharing among all creditors, including the multilateral institutions. The
number of litigation cases against HIPCs has been declining in recent years but flattened over the
past few years.
Given the voluntary nature of creditor participation in the HIPC Initiative, the IMF and the World
Bank will continue to use moral suasion to encourage creditors to participate in the Initiative and
to deliver fully their share of HIPC Initiative debt relief.
The IMF and World Bank will also continue to improve their ability to monitor the delivery of
HIPC Initiative debt relief. The IMF will continue to address issues related to participation in the
HIPC Initiative during its regular consultations and other missions to creditor countries.
List of Countries That Have Qualified for, are Eligible or Potentially Eligible
and May Wish to Receive HIPC Initiative Assistance (as of January 2013)46
Post-Completion-Point Countries (34)
Afghanistan Ghana Mozambique
Benin Guinea Nicaragua
Bolivia Guinea-Bissau Niger
Burkina Faso Guyana Rwanda
46http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
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Burundi Haiti So Tom &
Prncipe
Cameroon Honduras Senegal
Central AfricanRepublic
Liberia Sierra Leone
Comoros Madagascar Tanzania
Republic of Congo Malawi Togo
DemocraticRepublic of Congo
Mali Uganda
Cte dIvoire Mauritania Zambia
Ethiopia
The Gambia
Interim Countries (Between Decision and Completion Point) (2)
Chad
Pre-Decision-Point Countries (3)
Eritrea Somalia Sudan
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http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/MDG/english/The_MDG_Report_2012.pdf
For more information on GATT, see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Agreement_on_Tariffs_and_Trade. Full text can be found
at http://www.wto.org/english/docs_e/legal_e/gatt47_01_e.htm (GATT 1947) and
http://www.wto.org/english/docs_e/legal_e/06-gatt_e.htm (GATT 1994, must be read with
GATT 1947).
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Grimmett, Jeanne, J. Trade Preferences for Developing Countries and the WTO. US Congress.
Washington, D.C.: Congressional Research Service (RS22183), Library of Congress, 2007.
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RS22183.pdf
http://www.ustr.gov/trade-topics/trade-development/preference-programs
WTO Doha Round: The Agricultural Negotiations by Charles E. Hanrahan and Randy Schnepf
pages 13-21 at http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/assets/crs/RL33144.pdf
Fergusson, Ian F. World Trade Organization Negotiations the Doha Development Agenda. US
Congress, Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service (Order Code RL32060), Library of
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Brown, Drusilla K., Deardorff, Alan V. and Robert M. Stern. Computational Analysis of
Multilateral TradeLiberalization in the Uruguay Round and Doha Development Round.
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Thomas W. Hertel and Roman Keeney, What is at Stake: The Relative Importance of Import
Barriers, Export Subsidies and Domestic Support, in Anderson and Martin, eds.,
Agricultural Trade Reform in the Doha Agenda (Washington: World Bank, 2005)
Kym Anderson, Will Martin, and Dominique van der Mensbrugge, Doha Merchandise Trade
Reform: Whats At Stake for Developing Countries, July 2005, available at
http://www.worldbank.org/trade/wto
The Millennium Development Goals Report 2012. United Nations Publications, 2012.
http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/MDG/english/The_MDG_Report_2012.pdf
http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/RES/58/230
http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/59/223&Lang=E
http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/60/187
http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/RES/61/188
http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/RES/62/186
http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/63/206&Lang=E
http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/64/191&Lang=E
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http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/65/144&Lang=E
http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/res/66/189&Lang=E
http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/ffdconf/
http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/doha/documents/Doha_Declaration_FFD.pdf
http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/
http://www.un.org/ga/econcrisissummit/
http://www.un-ngls.org/spip.php?page=amdg10&id_article=2233
http://www.un.org/wcm/content/site/ldc/home
http://www.wfp.org/content/istanbul-programme-action-least-developed-countries-decade-
2011-2020
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=42281#.UPAB4W_aWWY
http://www.un.org/en/sustainablefuture/pdf/rio20%20concludes_press%20release.pdf
http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/67/435/Add.3&Lang=E
From http://www.worldbank.org/mdgs/global_partnership.html
http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTDEBTDEPT/0,,contentMDK:20634753
~menuPK:64166739~pagePK:64166689~piPK:64166646~theSitePK:469043,00.html
http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/hipc.htm
World Bank Website: http://www.worldbank.org/