The debt relief initiatives established in the context of the COVID-19 crisis threaten to fail because poorer countries are reluctant to participate. One reason for this is the claim made primarily by private creditors that the beneficiaries of debt relief exclude themselves long-term from the capital market. However, more important than any short-term downgrade of participating countries is the question whether the debt relief goes far enough to facilitate an economic restart.
Editor: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung
Authors: Kristina Rehbein and Jürgen Kaiser, erlassjahr.de
Date of publication: October 2021
Download: Analysis: FES Perspective: “No more loans? How creditors torpedo debt relief initiatives”
Also available in German: FES-Perspektive: “Nie wieder einen Kredit? Wie private Gläubiger Entschuldungsinitiativen torpedieren”