A debt crisis is looming in the Global South. High levels of public debt service and insufficient fiscal and monetary space are threatening recoveries and impeding much-needed investments in climate resilience and the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals. A new policy brief from the Think7 (T7) Task Force on Sustainable Economic Recovery makes seven recommendations […]
By William N. Kring Amidst the backdrop of an enduring pandemic, rising inflation, growing external debt and Russia’s war in Ukraine, finance ministers and central bankers convene in Washington, D.C. this week for the 2022 Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. These meetings could not come at a more […]
For the second year in a row, the China-Latin America Finance Database, jointly managed by the Boston University Global Development Policy Center and the Inter-American Dialogue, recorded no new overseas finance commitments from China to Latin American governments or state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in 2021 through its two most active policy banks, the China Development Bank […]
In Southeast Asia, several countries are already exposed to socio-economic and financial losses induced by physical climate risk. Some Southeast Asian countries exposed to physical risk, such as Indonesia, are also leading producers and exporters of fossil fuels. This compounds the country’s climate impacts by exposing them transition risk, or a situation in which climate […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the most serious global health crisis of the past century. For many African countries in particular, the pandemic has also had severe social and economic impacts. Already fragile welfare systems have been threatened or overwhelmed. In addition, the pandemic has adversely affected African intraregional and international trade, investment flows […]
By Ying Qian and Yan Wang Zhou Chengjun, Director of the Financial Research Institute of the People’s Bank of China, delivered a speech entitled “Building the Shanghai Model of Sovereign Debt Restructuring” at the fourth China International Finance 30 Forum held in Shanghai on May 29-30, 2021. His discussion centered on ideas for sovereign debt […]
By Samantha Igo As the Group of Twenty (G20) meet in Rome from October 30-31, the triple crisis of climate, COVID-19 and ballooning sovereign debt demands bold intervention. Countries are reeling from the economic and social costs following a summer of extreme weather events, with only 2.9 percent of people in low-income countries having received […]
By Bridgette Lang On Wednesday, September 22nd, Ying Qian, former advisor to the Asian Development Bank, joined the Fall 2021 Global China Research Colloquium for a discussion on Brady bonds and the potential for debt restructuring in the post-pandemic era. Discussing the findings of his recent working paper, Qian explained why Brady-bond-like instruments have the […]
By Maureen Heydt From October 11-15, 2021, China will host the first phase of the 15th Convention on Biological Diversity, Conference of the Parties (CBD COP15), a major global summit on biodiversity. Signed by 150 government leaders and entered into force on December 29, 1993, the Convention on Biological Diversity is dedicated to promoting sustainable […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to unprecedented global economic and human crisis, with many developing countries facing serious challenges in continuing to service ballooning levels of sovereign debt. Half of all low-income countries are either already in debt distress or at high risk. Against this backdrop, creditors and the international community have been contemplating various […]