Latest news with #FfD4
Scoop
a day ago
- Business
- Scoop
No Health, Gender And Economic Justice Without Ending Wars, Invasions And Genocides
While health, gender and other sustainable development goals are reeling under severe funding cuts, governments of richer nations are increasing defence budgets. More shocking is that same governments who are raising spending on militarisation, are the ones committing to 'peace' at a global meet on financing for development and refusing on debt cancellation for the Global South nations. In June 2025, a meeting of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and its allies was held which pledged to increase defence spending to 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035. 'Yet these same countries - the same NATO countries - during negotiations of 4th Financing for Development Conference of the UN (FfD4), refused to include a reference to debt cancellation for the Global South. This increased commitment to militarisation without relieving the persistent debt crisis remains a major gap in the FfD4 process,' said Swetha Sridhar, Senior Global Policy Research Officer at Fos Feminista. "This is the money (5% rise in budgets for militarisation) they are taking off from programmes on gender equality and human rights (including human right to health),' said Mabel Bianco, physician activist from Latin America and founding president of FEIM (foundation for studies and research on women). A Feminist Forum was organised right before the FfD4 began. 'Feminist Forum's Political Declaration importantly called for deescalating wars and ending territorial invasions and genocide - nothing less from this is acceptable,' said Sai Jyothirmai Racherla, Deputy Executive Director of ARROW (Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women). Agrees Lidy Nacpil, coordinator of Asian People's Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD): 'I would echo what Political Declaration of Feminist Forum organised before FfD4 said that no real financing justice can be reached without an urgent end to escalating wars, territorial invasions and genocides, in Gaza, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and other places.' 'There is growing realisation of debt. Global North has plundered Global South for centuries. Systematic accountability for the historical role of the Global North in causing and perpetuating the debt crises in the Global South, along with reparations and non-debt creating finance are central demands for a feminist transformation of the existing international financial architecture,' responded Zainab Shumail of Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD). Global South is reeling under perennial debt and debt servicing. But governments at FfD4 shy away from addressing this issue. Unless we go for structural reforms, stop privatisation of public services – so that public health, education and social support are fully funded – how will we deliver on SDGs where no one is left behind? The global financing architecture must be geared towards the realisation of a gender-just economy in which financing for development will result in equitable outcomes and fair distribution of resources that promotes social, economic, and environmental justice, instead of just providing lip service. This was being discussed at a SHE & Rights (Sexual Health with Equity & Rights) session co-hosted by International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP) 2025, Family Planning News Network (FPNN), Global Center for Health Diplomacy and Inclusion (CeHDI), International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW), Women's Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR), Asia Pacific Media Alliance for Health and Development (APCAT Media) and CNS. FfD4 failed to deliver on feminist agenda 'Feminist agenda refers to a gender transformative economic system that is based on rights to justice, care, and equality for everyone urgently. This was central to the Political Declaration of Feminist Forum held before the FfD4 in Seville, Spain. But FfD4 failed to deliver on gender equality and feminist agenda,' said Sai Jyothirmai Racherla. 'FfD4 compromised on the ambition that was warranted as per the urgency of our current times, and lack of political will which is required to embrace the much-needed bold reforms,' said Lidy Nacpil. 'FfD4 outcome document was influenced and shaped by main 'blockers' of any real progress. These 'blockers' were Global North countries, and this is not a surprising fact. There was very active undermining and opposition to the proposals for actionable mandates for the transformation of the international debt and aid architectures. This transformation is vital to address the colonial and patriarchal legacies that plague the current financial architecture. There was a lack of transparency throughout the whole FfD4 negotiation process. Accountability of the process was absent and restrictions of civil society participation which continued up to - and even worsened during the Seville FfD4 conference – were major impediments,' added Lidy Nacpil. She explained further that: 'FfD4 failed because the FFD4 outcomes failed to make meaningful progress on establishing a global financing framework that we have always demanded for many years which should be centred on human rights, promote the stability of the biosphere and brings all planetary boundaries back to a safe zone and uphold the principle of CBDR (Common But Differentiated Responsibilities). This framework should address the redistribution of care work which is predominantly done by women and acknowledges and addresses the racial dimension of SDGs.' 'FfD4 outcome document also failed to prioritise public financing for high quality essential services and move beyond an over reliance on private finance to fill in development financing gaps. It failed to address the equity for income distribution. It failed to strengthen and uphold democratic space and civic participation. And it failed to call for reparations for the economic and environmental harm caused by colonialism, patriarchy, slavery, and resource extraction from the global south,' Lidy added. FfD4 outcome document should have included a clear commitment to shift away from so-called debt resolution mechanisms which are dominated by creditors. It should have taken us steps forward for a process towards a UN Framework Convention on Sovereign Debt – which was among the strong calls given by civil society. Connect the dots: Debt, tax, trade, justice and feminist agenda 'Issues of debt, tax, trade, and justice are all deeply intertwined with a feminist agenda for sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice. For example, we know that financial autonomy translates to greater bodily autonomy. We also know that gendered impacts of poverty leave marginalised communities unable to access services for sexual and reproductive health and rights,' said Swetha Sridhar. Agrees Mabel Bianco: 'FfD4 compromise document is so weak. For example, it mentions about the access of universal health coverage but not about sexual and reproductive health. But this is what we acutely need because it is not possible to reach development if we are not having these rights recognised - including access to safe abortion.' 'Since FfD4 outcome document is so weak, we must consider that this is not the end rather it is just the beginning of our further struggles to achieve gender justice and human rights. We are also going to find strength in struggles and align with other like-minded movements advocating for rights around the UN. We are going to put in what we need. We are not resigning of our principles, ideas, or our proposals. If you read the Political Declaration of Feminist Forum held before FfD4, this is what we need. We need to continue resisting and fighting till we achieve our goals,' added Mabel Bianco. 'For the young people, especially young girls and women, we need to request them to consider and recognise that what we reached before (in terms of gender equality and rights) is not forever. We need to keep fighting to be sure that we do not lose these gains made towards gender equality – and move towards delivering on all sustainable goals and targets,' said Mabel. 'We are not going to stop until we deliver on gender equality. We will continue to do our work to demand for a right-based, environmentally-just, de-colonial, intersectional, sustainable, and person-centred economic model. We need such an economic model in current times where care, reparations, redistribution and accountability remain central. We must reform financial architecture so that it can guarantee long-term flexible, inclusive, and equitable financing for development. We also need to restructure the global economic governance because currently it is very Global North heavy. We need to have Global South parity. We need to include democratisation of the decision-making processes across the international financial institutions and the multilateral development banks,' rightly concludes Sai Jyothirmai Racherla. Shobha Shukla – CNS (Citizen News Service) (Shobha Shukla is a feminist, health and development justice advocate, and an award-winning founding Managing Editor and Executive Director of CNS (Citizen News Service). She was also the Lead Discussant for SDG-3 at United Nations High Level Political Forum (HLPF 2025). She is a former senior Physics faculty of prestigious Loreto Convent College; current President of Asia Pacific Regional Media Alliance for Health and Development (APCAT Media); Chairperson of Global AMR Media Alliance (GAMA received AMR One Health Emerging Leaders and Outstanding Talents Award 2024); and coordinator of SHE & Rights (Sexual Health with Equity & Rights). Follow her on Twitter/X @shobha1shukla or read her writings here
Daily Maverick
5 days ago
- Business
- Daily Maverick
Road ahead is steep but not insurmountable– SA's G20 can still deliver for debt and development
The global economy has slowed and become less supportive of developing countries. African countries may be forced to resort to international capital markets to fill the gap in their development financing needs. It is crunch time for South Africa to begin delivering on its ambitious G20 development finance agenda. The third of the four meetings this year of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors takes place on 17 and 18 July. A communiqué is expected to be issued, focusing on the development finance issues that South Africa prioritised at the beginning of its G20 presidency. The agenda includes politically and economically complicated topics such as sovereign debt and the cost of capital and climate finance, which are issues that are high on the global policy agenda. At the recent African Union Conference on Debt held in Togo in May, African leaders, among other matters, called for the reform of the G20 common framework and for a 'new debt doctrine'. The Compromiso de Sevilla, the outcome document from the recently concluded UN-sponsored Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), also acknowledged the need for a more development-oriented debt architecture. Unfortunately, the international economic environment in which South Africa needs to deliver on this agenda has become significantly more complex and challenging. The global economy has slowed and become less supportive of developing countries. The World Bank recently reduced its estimate of global growth from about 2.8% to 2.3% and forecast that average global growth in the first seven years of the 2020s would be the slowest of any decade since the 1960s. Its chief economist declared that ' outside of Asia, the developing world is becoming a development-free zone '. Some G20 participating states have become less supportive of developing countries. For example, the US and the UK, among other countries, have significantly cut their official development assistance, with the US going as far as eliminating USAid, its main aid agency. US President Donald Trump's administration also pulled out of FfD4 and has given mixed signals on his participation in the G20 summit in November. He has even opposed the theme for South Africa's G20 presidency – Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability. These developments aggravate Africa's development challenges. Currently, Africa has an annual financing gap of around $900-billion to $1.3-trillion for Agenda 2063 and the SDGs. While domestic resources should be the major source of each country's financing for these needs, they are unlikely to be enough in the short to medium term. Unfortunately, the amount of funding from official sources such as donor governments and the multilateral development banks (MDBs) will not be sufficient to plug this hole. Therefore, African countries may be forced to resort to international capital markets to fill the gap in their development financing needs. The financing these markets offer is expensive, involves exchange rate risks and is pro-cyclical. In addition, evidence suggests that African countries are charged much higher interest rates than countries in other regions with comparable credit ratings. The resulting 'African premium' costs African countries $74.5-billion per year in excess interest payments, according to a UNDP report. The reasons for this premium are still up for debate. It has been attributed to credit rating bias, lack of quality data, a lack of sound fiscal and public finance management by African governments, and to the fact that many African countries are new to international markets, having only started issuing international bonds between 2007 and 2020. Meanwhile, as African countries continue to deal with these tough conditions on the international capital markets, efforts to address their existing debt burden remain painfully slow. The current approach to sovereign debt restructuring uses the common framework developed by the G20 to deal with the obligations to all official and commercial creditors of low-income countries. Unfortunately, this framework has failed to deliver adequate outcomes for African countries. South Africa's G20 presidency provides the next opportunity to address this challenge. As South Africa commences the last half of its G20 Presidency, we suggest that it prioritise the following issues on the development finance agenda: South Africa must champion the Borrowers' Forum This forum, promoted in the outcome document from FfD4, would facilitate the exchange of ideas, information and peer learning among sovereign borrowers. If supported by a permanent secretariat, as proposed in the Report of the UNSG's Expert Group on Debt, the forum could become the repository of information about sovereign borrowing and the source of technical support and capacity building for debtor countries. South Africa should advocate for the G20 to actively support the creation of the forum as soon as possible. It should also work with the African Union and African G20 guest countries to take the first actions to operationalise a regional borrowers forum in Africa. Improving sovereign debt architecture South Africa, as co-chair of the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable (GSDR), must use it as a tool to promote the improvement of the sovereign debt architecture. The FfD4 Compromiso calls for the creation of a working group to propose a set of principles for responsible sovereign borrowing and lending that can make sovereign debt transactions and the international debt architecture more effective, efficient and more supportive of optimal development outcomes. The GSDR was established as an informal G20-linked forum, chaired by the G20 presidency, the IMF and the World Bank. It brings together a diverse array of creditors, debtors and other stakeholders to discuss how to make the sovereign debt process work better for all stakeholders. South Africa should convene a meeting of the GSDR to begin discussing the framework for promoting responsible sovereign borrowing and lending, including the planning and management of such transactions and their outcomes. Panel of technical experts South Africa must advocate for the G20 to appoint a panel of technical experts to study the barriers to affordable, adequate and predictable flows of development finance to African sovereigns and make recommendations on what the G20 can do to remedy this situation. This can complement the work of the African Experts Panel, which has a broader mandate of 'exploring and defining strategies that advance Africa's collective developmental interests'. South Africa's G20 presidency should not be the end of this year's advocacy for a new and more developmentally responsible debt architecture. These actions should also be promoted at the World Social Summit and the COP30 in Brazil. DM Daniel D Bradlow is a part-time G20 Senior Fellow at the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), where his research focuses on the finance track of the G20 and related Think20 issues.
Indian Express
10-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4): A must-know for UPSC exam
Take a look at the essential concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up your knowledge. Here's your knowledge nugget on major outcomes of FfD4. (Relevance: Important conferences and summits are important from both the Prelims and Mains perspective of the UPSC exam.) Recently, the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) was held from 30 June – 3 July in Seville, Spain. A Sevilla Commitment was adopted ahead of the start of the Conference, which laid down a path to close the $4 trillion annual SDG financing gap in developing countries. However, the USA, one of the largest economies, skipped the Conference. This Conference was supported by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), through its Financing for Sustainable Development Office, and the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). 1. Financing for development (FfD) is an ongoing process to align financial flows and policies with economic, social, and environmental priorities. In 1997, the Agenda for Development was adopted by the UN General Assembly (UNGA), which called for consideration of holding an international conference on FfD. 2. According to the Earth Negotiations Bulletin, a division of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), 'the first International Conference on Financing for Development took place in 2002 in Monterrey, Mexico. The resulting Monterrey Consensus 'resolved to address the challenges of financing for development' and 'to eradicate poverty, achieve sustained economic growth and promote sustainable development.' 3. In 2008, a follow-up conference was held in Doha, Qatar. Building on this, the third Conference on Financing for Development adopted the Addis Ababa Action Agenda in 2015. It included a policy framework to realign financial flows to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Ten years after Addis Ababa, the FfD conference was held in Spain. Financing is the engine of development. And right now, this engine is sputtering. – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres statement at opening of 4th FfD4 4. Many countries face escalating debt burdens, declining investments, decreasing international aid, and increasing trade barriers. The Conference is seen as an opportunity to close the staggering $4 trillion annual financing gap, promoting development, bringing millions of people out of poverty, and helping achieve the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, which are currently lagging. 5. Last year, 3.3 billion people were living in countries that pay more interest on their debts than they spend on health or education, and the number will increase to 3.4 billion people this year, according to Grynspan. And developing countries will pay $947 billion to service debts this year, up from $847 billion last year. 1. Building on the 2015 Addis Ababa Action Agenda, the Sevilla Commitment reaffirms adherence to realizing sustainable development, including effectively implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals and upholding all principles enshrined in it. 2. With the approaching deadline of SDGs, the Sevilla Commitment charts a path on three fronts: catalyzing investment at scale for sustainable development, addressing the debt and development crisis, and reforming the international financial architecture. 3. Under the Sevilla Platform for Action, 'new financing mechanisms were announced to tackle unsustainable debt burdens, and additional initiatives aimed to enhance crisis response and climate resilience, expand access to social protection and support local and digital economies, among others,' according to the UN press release. 4. A Debt Swaps for Development Hub initiative led by Spain and the World Bank was launched. It aims to strengthen capacity and enhance collaboration to scale up debt swaps and lower debt service burdens. 5. Along with this, a Debt-for-Development Swap Programme by Italy that will convert 230 million Euros of debt obligations of African countries into investments in development projects and a Sevilla Forum on Debt to help countries learn from one another and coordinate their approaches in debt management and restructuring were announced. 6. Led by Brazil and Spain, an Effective Taxation of High-Net-Worth Individuals initiative was launched to ensure high-net-worth individuals pay their fair share. India had made an uncharacteristically strong criticism of the Baku agreement, calling the final agreed amount 'abysmally poor' and 'paltry'. It has been said that the lack of adequate finance was not just an abdication of responsibility by the developed countries, but also a major setback to global climate action. 1. A few days before the start of the FfD4, the World Bank published a Report titled 'Foreign Direct Investment in Retreat', pointing out that the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into developing countries had fallen to $435 billion in 2023, the lowest in nearly 20 years. It warns that rising trade and investment barriers pose a 'significant threat to global efforts to mobilise financing for development. 2. According to M. Ayhan Kose, the World Bank Group's Deputy Chief Economist, the sharp drop in FDI for developing countries 'should sound alarm bells'. Reversing the trend, Kose said, was not just an 'economic imperative' but also 'essential for job creation, sustained growth, and achieving broader development goals'. 3. According to the Report, the prolonged and widespread investment weakness in emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) has contributed to a large backlog of unmet infrastructure needs. 4. Weak investment growth is undermining efforts to achieve key development goals, including tackling climate change and accelerating the energy transition, and reducing poverty and inequality. By some estimates, EMDEs need to invest at least an additional 1.4 percent of GDP through 2030 just to address climate change and the energy transition. 5. Among EMDEs, China has been the biggest receiver of FDI from 2012 to 2023, accounting for nearly one-third of these inflows. Brazil was second at 10 per cent and India third at 6 per cent, the World Bank said. 6. While data for the 2023 calendar year is the latest available at a global level, FDI into India as per Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data increased to $81.04 billion in 2024-25 from $71.28 billion in 2023-24. However, net FDI into India – which adjusts the gross FDI number by deducting the funds repatriated by foreign investors and the investments made by Indian entities abroad – fell to just $353 million in the last fiscal from $10.13 billion in 2023-24. Consider the following statements about the International Conference on Financing for Development: 1. The first International Conference on Financing for Development took place in Doha, Qatar. 2. The Sevilla Commitment was signed by the USA, UK, France, Germany, and Italy. 3. The Effective Taxation of High-Net-Worth Individuals initiative was launched by Brazil and Spain. Which of the following statements is/are incorrect? (a) 2 only (b) 1 and 2 only (c) 2 and 3 only (d) 1, 2, and 3 (Source: US skips global UN meeting aimed at raising trillions of dollars to combat poverty, 'Alarm bells' for developing nations as 2023 FDI lowest since 2005 – World Bank) Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter. 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Bangkok Post
07-07-2025
- Business
- Bangkok Post
Time to invest more in women
The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) in Seville, which ended on Thursday, has taken place at a time of escalating debt crises, rising poverty, declining food security and proliferating climate-related damage. These crises are all exacerbated by deep reductions in official development assistance (ODA), and they all disproportionately affect women and girls, especially in developing countries. Almost half of humanity -- 3.4 billion people -- now live in countries that direct more revenues toward servicing interest on debt than toward education or health, where a lack of investment directly undermines economic opportunities for women and girls. Moreover, only 5% of ODA goes toward programmes with gender equality as the principal objective. Women's options for improving their own economic circumstances are limited, not least because of limited access to finance. The total finance gap for women-led micro, small- and medium-sized enterprises is an estimated $1.7 trillion. Women running medium-sized enterprises, in particular, struggle to access both venture capital to support growth, and working capital, to support day-to-day operations. Some 740 million women worldwide lack access even to a bank account. Compounding the problem is unequal access to the internet, which is essential for financial and digital literacy. It does not help that women continue to dedicate a disproportionate amount of time to unpaid care work, which, if properly compensated, would add at least $10.8 trillion per year to the global economy. Female labour force participation amounts to just under 47% globally, compared to 72% for men. These problems are set to worsen. For starters, the algorithms underpinning AI tools -- which are being used in a growing range of areas, from assessing creditworthiness to making hiring decisions -- may perpetuate existing biases. Furthermore, many developing economies will struggle to create enough jobs for their burgeoning youth populations: while 1.2 billion people are set to reach working age within the next decade, only 420 million jobs are expected to be created. Young women are more likely than young men to be left out. At the current rate of progress, it will take 134 years to close the global gender pay gap. There is now a large body of evidence showing that everyone loses when women and girls are not given the tools and opportunities to reach their potential. Economies in Sub-Saharan Africa lose $210 billion annually -- more than 10% of the region's total GDP -- as a result of girls leaving school early. Low- and middle-income countries stand to lose $500 billion over the next five years if they fail to close the gender gap in internet access and usage. Studies also show that gender-responsive approaches significantly increase the effectiveness of climate-adaptation finance. All told, investing in gender equality could increase global GDP by more than 20%. FfD4 represents an important opportunity to build a global financial architecture that expands women's access to finance, increases their labour-force participation and contributes to shared prosperity. If done right, this process would harness the energy of young people and make the most of emerging technologies. There is good reason for hope. The FfD4 outcome document (Compromiso de Sevilla), adopted on Monday on the first day of the conference, includes commitments to gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls, including through poverty eradication, female entrepreneurship and equal access to financial services. But commitments are just the beginning; to deliver real progress, a robust framework for implementation and accountability will be essential. The "Sevilla Platform for Action" -- which will mobilise partnerships among government, civil society organisations and private sector actors to advance concrete initiatives -- is a promising step in this direction. Promising initiatives are already taking shape as part of this platform. One of them -- called Investing in Care for Equality and Prosperity: A Global Initiative to Advance Gender-Responsive Financing for Development -- aims to expand impact investments in care policies, infrastructure and services. For example, partnerships with the private sector would focus on delivering supportive workplace policies and decent working conditions for care workers, and partnerships with financial institutions would drive investment in care infrastructure. This initiative is led by a small group of countries and civil society organisations, and has been endorsed by many more, including our organisation, GWL Voices. Such initiatives have huge potential to advance gender equality. But closing the gender gap will require leaders to apply a gendered lens to policy debates across the board, not least when it comes to finance. And that can happen only if women have a seat at the table. As it stands, women remain woefully underrepresented at the top of international financial institutions and in senior finance-related positions in public institutions. In 2023, only 26 of the International Monetary Fund's 190 members had female finance ministers, and only 23 central banks were led by women (though the total rose to 29 in 2024). Many international financial institutions, finance ministries, and central banks have never had a woman at the helm. The development community must address the structural barriers women face head-on, at FfD4 and beyond. This is not just a moral imperative; it is smart economics. The time to invest in women and girls is now. ©2025 Project Syndicate María Fernanda Espinosa, a former foreign minister of Ecuador and a former president of the UN General Assembly, is Executive Director of GWL Voices and Co-Chair of the Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery Project. Anita Bhatia, a member of GWL Voices, is a former deputy executive director of UN Women and a former UN assistant secretary-general.
Business Insider
06-07-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Egypt secures over $900 million in debt swap deals with Germany, Italy and China
Egypt is strategically leveraging debt swap agreements to alleviate its debt burden and unlock development financing, amid growing calls for global financial system reform. Egypt utilizes debt swap agreements to reduce financial strains and boost development financing. Notable deals include partnerships with Germany, Italy, and China, totaling over $900 million. Challenges like increased external debt and debt servicing costs underlined the need for global reforms. According to the country's Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat, Egypt has signed debt swap deals worth over $900 million with Germany and Italy. Additionally, the country has finalized a pioneering debt swap agreement with China, with the sole purpose of easing the country's financial pressures and supporting its development goals. Al-Mashat made the announcement during a high-level session at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) in Spain. The session highlighted the pressing fiscal challenges facing low- and middle-income countries, particularly in Africa. Quoting new figures, Al-Mashat revealed that external debt among these countries increased to $8.8 trillion as of 2023. Consequently, debt servicing costs have surged to $1.4 trillion almost double what they were a decade ago. ' Over 60 percent of low-income countries are now in or near debt distress,' she warned, stressing that without immediate policy shifts, global public debt could rise above 100 percent of GDP by 2030. For many African nations, whose economies are already stretched thin by climate shocks, currency depreciation, and external borrowing costs, she said the figures reflect an urgent need for reform. Egypt seeks improved financing standards The Minister further urged the international community to embrace more adaptable and transparent financing mechanisms. She proposed responsible lending standards, the automatic suspension of debt during crises, and a global platform for sharing expertise on innovative financing instruments like debt swaps. She also pressed multilateral development banks to scale up the use of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), blended finance, and liquidity tools to support countries tackling climate change and development goals. Egypt's approach could serve as a blueprint for other African nations seeking relief from unsustainable debt while pursuing long-term growth. As global financial talks continue, Cairo's bold strategy underscores the potential of innovation in rewriting Africa's debt narrative.
