WASHINGTON — Concerns about a looming debt crisis that had been growing in the past couple years have been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
As countries scramble to find the funds to address the health response and the economic fallout from the coronavirus crisis, they are often constrained by how much they have to pay to service their debt obligations. In some countries, debt payments amount to more than their spending on health or education.
While both the International Monetary Fund and the G-20 recently announced some debt relief through the end of the year, development advocates say it will not be enough to address either the immediate needs in response to the crisis or the broader systemic problems.
In this video explainer, Devex looks at why debt is important to financing development, where things stand, and how the current system to address debt issues works.
About the authors
Adva Saldinger@AdvaSal
Adva Saldinger is a Senior Reporter at Devex where she covers development finance, as well as U.S. foreign aid policy. Adva explores the role the private sector and private capital play in development and authors the weekly Devex Invested newsletter bringing the latest news on the role of business and finance in addressing global challenges. A journalist with more than 10 years of experience, she has worked at several newspapers in the U.S. and lived in both Ghana and South Africa.
Naomi Mihara
Naomi Mihara is an Associate Editor for Devex, working on creative and audiovisual projects. She has a background in journalism and international development, having previously served as an assistant correspondent for Japanese newspaper The Yomiuri Shimbun and as a communications officer for the International Organization for Migration in Southeast Asia. She holds a master’s degree in Multimedia Journalism from Bournemouth University.
