Oxfam reaction to IMF debt relief and loan annoucement for Haiti
Pamela Gomez, Oxfam International Policy Advisor, said:
“While it is welcome that the Fund is providing Haiti with debt relief it is deeply concerning that at the same time the Fund is risking a build up of Haiti’s future debt problems with a loan of $60m. This assistance should be a grant, not another loan, which might help to bail-out Haiti today but only by creating an even bigger debt problem tomorrow.
Anyone who owns a credit card will understand that this is not a route to solvency. Haiti is an extremely poor country and the massive calamity that it suffered in January makes it a special case. The IMF’s Executive Board must alter its internal rules now to allow grants to countries in exceptional circumstances, as is so obviously the case here.”
/Ends
To arrange an interview, or for more information, please contact:
Sarah Dransfield, in the UK, on: + 44 7767 085636 or sdransfield@oxfam.org.uk
or Pamela Gomez, in Washington, on: + 1 240 543 2520 or Pamela.Gomez@oxfaminternational.org
Notes to editors:
- The $268 million in debt relief for Haiti will come from the Post-Catastrophic Debt Relief Trust Fund.
- A loan of $60 million – under the Extended Credit Facility – will provide the country with reserves needed to manage the exchange rate.
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