United Nations Secretary-General Guterres said in a statement on the 9th that he welcomed the announcement by the International Monetary and Financial Committee and the Development Committee of the International Bank, the decision-making bodies of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to address the debt crisis caused by the coronavirus epidemic.
The 2021 IMF and World Bank Spring Meeting was held April 5-11. During the meeting, the International Monetary and Financial Committee and the Development Committee of the World Bank provided advice to the IMF and the World Bank on world economic prospects and poverty eradication.
Guterres said that developing economies have been trying to obtain sufficient financial resources to meet the urgent needs caused by the coronavirus crisis. Previously, Guterres has repeatedly called for increased liquidity through the large issuance of special drawing rights and the reallocation of unused special drawing rights, and proposed a three-phase approach to the debt burden, namely, debt freeze, debt relief for the most vulnerable countries, and reform of the international debt architecture.
Guterres said he welcomed the recent call of the International Monetary and Financial Committee for the reallocation of special drawing rights. At the same time, he was encouraged by the support for the Debt Suspension Initiative and the Debt Suspension Initiative Common Framework for Debt Treatment Follow-up.
Guterres also noted that reforming the international debt architecture is crucial because a debt crisis in the midst of the pandemic “will make the Sustainable Development Goals out of reach.” He said that he looked forward to working with partners such as the international financial institutions to achieve a fair, inclusive and sustainable recovery of the world economy.
