IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva last week said that African states alone faced a financing gap of US$345 billion through 2023 to deal with the pandemic and its economic impact. — AFP pic
The G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative approved in April has seen more than 40 of 73 eligible countries defer some US$5 billion in debt payments, but that is far short of the nearly US$12 billion in projected relief if all eligible countries were to participate. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva last week said that African states alone faced a financing gap of US$345 billion through 2023 to deal with the pandemic and its economic impact.
“The desire to rope in all creditors, and particularly China and Russia, I think it is great,” said Patrick Njoroge, Governor of the Central Bank of Kenya. “The question is what is next,” she said, adding that some countries that had unsustainable debt levels before the pandemic would likely need “deeper debt relief” that cut their overall debt level ― a step that would require the involvement of China and other non-Paris Club members, as well as the private sector.