The Jubilee Blog

G20 Presidents and Prime Ministers Meet for Rio Summit

Hunger, Poverty, Climate, Debt and Economy on Agenda for Biden's Final G20 Meeting

Washington DC – Brazil hosts G20 heads of state and heads of international organizations in Rio de Janeiro for two days of talks on the global economy, starting November 18. The summit wraps up Brazil’s presidency of the group and prioritizes initiatives on global hunger and poverty, climate change, debt and the reform of financial institutions.

“Brazil is focusing on the need for the global economy to address poverty, inequality and climate issues,” said Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of the religious development organization Jubilee USA Network who is in Rio for the meetings. “The lack of G20 consensus on debt policy remains a stumbling block to reduce poverty and the impacts of climate change.”

LeCompte is in Brazil with the G20 Interfaith Forum presenting recommendations to the G20 on debt, poverty, climate, economic and human trafficking challenges.

In fifteen days, South Africa takes over the presidency of the group. It announced that developing country debt vulnerabilities and access to aid will be top priorities under its leadership. 

Jubilee USA Network is an alliance of more than 75 US organizations and 750 faith communities working with 50 Jubilee global partners. Jubilee USA builds an economy that serves, protects and promotes the participation of the most vulnerable. Jubilee USA wins critical global financial reforms and won more than $130 billion in debt relief to benefit the world's poorest people. www.jubileeusa.org

IMF Forecasts Low Growth, High Debts and Prices

"...our forecasts point to an unforgiving combination of low growth and high debt—a difficult future," stated IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva speaking ahead of the Annual Meetings of the IMF and World Bank. Georgieva noted that public debt is higher than before the pandemic and in spite of declining inflation, prices remain high.

“While we experience lower inflation, prices for groceries will remain high for all of us,” said Eric LeCompte the Executive Director of Jubilee USA Network who attends the meetings. “Not enough jobs, high debt payments and food prices are impacting the poor the most.”

The role of the IMF in debt relief and restructurings will be on the agenda at the meetings. In June, Pope Francis called for urgent action on debt forgiveness and new international vehicles to address debt crises, in the lead up to the Jubilee 2025 year.

"Debating solutions for debt crises, that affect most developing countries, dominates the agenda of the upcoming meetings," shared LeCompte.

Georgieva noted that expanding conflicts could destabilize markets and economies and countries are making hard choices to address climate change or poverty.

"In addition to the loss of life because of war, there is a global human cost as war derails cooperation for global agreements on poverty, jobs and climate issues," explained LeCompte. "Georgieva stressed the stark choices that too many countries face to pay debt, address climate challenges or build schools."

Delivering her first curtain-raiser speech since members appointed Georgieva to a second term at the helm of the institution, she raised the need to regulate artificial intelligence as it could have a role in managing aspects of the global economy.

"Given artificial intelligence is being raised as a way to strengthen the economy, it is crucial that all of us participate in the decisions of if, how and where AI is used and who controls AI," said LeCompte. 

Pope Francis addressed the recent G7 Summit on the ethical implication of artificial intelligence.

The managing director's speech alluded to recent IMF decisions lowering high surcharges that countries pay on loans and increasing capacity to lend at zero percent interest rate to the poorest countries.

“Surcharges punish countries experiencing a crisis,” noted LeCompte. “The decision to lower the surcharges is a necessary step, but more action on surcharges is needed.”

Read Kristalina Georgieva's curtain-raiser speech here.

Read Pope Francis' June address on the focus of Jubilee 2025 here.  

Read Jubilee USA Network and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung New York Office's "Debt Sustainability Assessments and their Role in the Global Financial Architecture" paper series here. 

Nobel Laureate, Former Economy Minister and Economic Experts Propose Improving IMF and World Bank Debt Analysis

Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz and former Argentina Economy Minister Martin Guzman authored a study to improve how the IMF and World Bank analyze debt problems. The paper is part of “Debt Sustainability Assessments and their Role in the Global Financial Architecture,” a four-part series to appear as chapters in a book this fall. The papers are commissioned by the religious development group Jubilee USA Network and German foundation Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. The studies were presented to IMF and World Bank executive directors on September 5th, 2024.

The IMF and World Bank conduct debt sustainability analyses that guide prevention and solutions for debt crises. The experts assert that recent debt restructurings like those in Zambia, Sri Lanka and Ghana, faced delays because of differences among private creditors and the IMF and World Bank debt analysis.

“Too often debt sustainability analysis doesn't  provide the full picture to deal with the economic challenges that most countries face,” said Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA Network. “These technical debt assessments impact all of us. The devil is in the details and current debt analysis underestimates debt crises, leads to failed recoveries or inflicts harm on the people of a country already in crisis."

The series of papers are written by experts familiar with debt sustainability. In addition to the paper from Stigltz and Guzman, other paper authors include Sherillyn Raga, Matthew Martin and Gail Hurley. These authors focused on economic shocks such as pandemics and weather events, the sustainable development and climate goals and accountability to affected populations.

“If debt analysis includes preparing for economic shocks, addressing climate changes and how people are fully impacted, we can better prevent and solve crises,” added LeCompte who serves on United Nations finance expert groups.

The IMF initiated a review of its methodology to assess debt in low-income countries. Pope Francis declared 2025 is a Jubilee year, calling for the forgiveness of unpayable debts and an international process to deal with debt crises.

Read the Debt Sustainability Assessments and their Role in the Global Financial Architecture paper series here.

Jubilee USA Network is an alliance of more than 75 US organizations and 750 faith communities working with 50 Jubilee global partners. Jubilee USA builds an economy that serves, protects and promotes the participation of the most vulnerable. Jubilee USA wins critical global financial reforms and won more than $130 billion in debt relief to benefit the world's poorest people. www.jubileeusa.org

Pressure Mounts to Address Global Debt Crises as G20 Finance Ministers Meet

Rio de Janeiro Gathering Expected to Advance Development Bank, Tax and Climate Measures

G20 finance ministers begin their third meeting under this year’s G20 Brazilian Presidency. Debt, development bank reforms and tax measures to fund programs to address hunger, poverty and climate change will be center on the agenda.

"The meetings takes place as growing debt crises mean that too many countries are failing to spend on the needs of their people," noted Eric LeCompte who leads the religious development group, Jubilee USA Network. "Developing countries need debt relief, aid and ways to raise more revenue."

A UN report found that 45 developing countries spend more on debt service than on health. In Kenya, violent protests erupted after the government attempted to raise taxes to meet debt payments and continue more than a month later. Addressing impacts of climate change is a focus during G20 meetings as the international community finalizes funding targets during climate negotiations over the next year.

"The G20 is largely responsible for setting the targets and raising the money we need to address climate change and poverty," noted LeCompte who serves on United Nations debt expert groups. "We need better global debt, tax and aid policies to end global poverty and heal our planet."

Multilateral development bank funding and international tax agreements to increase taxes on the extremely wealthy are on the G20 agenda.

Africa Religious Leaders: Debt Forgiveness Key to Region’s Economic Renewal

Interfaith Africa Leaders Call for Changes to Global Economy During Jubilee 2025

Ahead of the Jubilee 2025 year that faith communities are celebrating worldwide, African interfaith leaders called for debt forgiveness and processes to support economic development. Representing Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran and other Christian denominations, Muslims, national councils of churches, interreligious councils across 13 countries in Africa and regional religious organizations, the dignitaries released a statement to the G20, G7, United Nations, IMF and World Bank decisionmakers.

“Our countries … face again agonizing choices between spending and investing on their people and paying their creditors,” said the Africa religious leaders in their statement.“This year alone, Africa will spend $90 billion servicing public debt. Yet, the average African country’s combined spending on health, education and social protection is two-thirds of their debt payments.”

The religious leaders recalled the work of faith communities 25 years ago during the Jubilee 2000 year which led to the largest ever collective debt relief initiative. The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries/Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (HIPC/MDRI) mobilized more than $130 billion in debt relief in 38 countries.

“Former President Julius Nyerere, of Tanzania, was among the first African political leaders raising their voices to question the need to put debt above the lives of our children,” said Rev. Canon Makunzo Moses Matonya, Secretary General of the Christian Council of Churches in Tanzania. “Unfortunately, we have seen debt rise to levels where we have to face that question again.”

Since 2010, African countries’ interest payments more than doubled, as a percentage of their revenue. At the same time, their combined spending on health, education, social protection and climate amount to two-thirds of debt payments.

“Early in the millennium, debt relief freed the fiscal space for important poverty reduction investments,” said Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, in Nigeria. “An important focus for us, as then, is that we have good governance safeguards to protect public participation and accountability in the use of those funds.”

Faith leaders in Africa have become increasingly vocal as the continent faces the effects of multiple crises.

“We have allowed a divorce between traditional economic approaches and spiritual values,” said Sheikh Ibrahim Lethome, of the Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims. “As faith leaders, we have a role in guiding our communities so they can make those connections.”

The faith leader statement called for responsible lending and borrowing principles, debt contract clauses that share climate and other risks, and additional sources of finance that do not create debt in order to prevent new high indebtedness cycles.

“While we have moved forward critical debt relief and aid, we still need need improvements in debt relief and aid processes,” said Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of the religious development organization Jubilee USA Network, and a co-organizer of the convening of African leaders. “If we had the debt policies and institutions religious leaders called for 25 years ago, we would have tools to help address the climate and poverty crises.”

Read the Africa Religious Leaders' "Heralding a Debt Jubilee in 2025" statement here.