Enhancing International Cooperation Towards a Durable Solution to the External Debt Problem of Developing Countries

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 94c External debt crisis and development, published in 1996.

What other versions does this mandate have?

7 versions · 1996–2003

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/57/240

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2003	A/RES/57/240	Enhancing international cooperation towards a durable solution to the external debt problem of developing countries	1,568	17%Compare
2001	A/RES/55/184	Enhancing international cooperation towards a durable solution to the external debt problem of developing countries	2,770	36%Compare
2000	A/RES/54/202	Enhancing international cooperation towards a durable solution to the external debt problem of developing countries	3,136	22%Compare
1999	A/RES/53/175	Enhancing international cooperation towards a durable solution to the external debt problem of developing countries	2,911	47%Compare
1998	A/RES/52/185	Enhancing international cooperation towards a durable solution to the external debt problem of developing countries	1,950	52%Compare

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

1 report · 2003

Year	Symbol	Title		Mandate resolution
2003	A/58/290	External debt crisis and development report of the Secretary-General		A/RES/57/240

What subjects does this mandate have?

18 subjects

Africa Coordination Within UN System Debt Conversions Debt Relief Debt Restructuring Debt Servicing Development Assistance Development Finance Economic Growth Economic Integration External Debt Financial Assistance Financial Flows Financial Institutions Least Developed Countries Resources Mobilization Sustainable Development Trade Agreements

What’s in this document?

24 operative paragraphs

Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on the developing country debt situation as of mid-1995;⁵

⁵A/50/379 and Corr.1.

Recognizes that effective, equitable, development-oriented and durable solutions to the external debt and debt-servicing problems of developing countries can contribute substantially to the strengthening of the global economy and to the efforts of developing countries to achieve sustained economic growth and sustainable development;

Also recognizes that the evolving international debt strategy has to be supplemented by appropriate external financial flows to indebted developing countries;

Emphasizes the importance for developing countries of continuing their efforts to promote a favourable environment for attracting foreign investment, thereby promoting economic growth and sustainable development, and stresses the need for the international community to promote a conducive external economic environment through, inter alia, improved market access, stabilization of exchange rates, effective stewardship of international interest rates and increased resource flows, as well as improved access to technology for the developing countries;

Stresses the need for finding effective, equitable, development-oriented and durable solutions to the continuing debt and debt-servicing problems of the poorest and most indebted developing countries and the importance of a full, constructive and expeditious implementation of the Naples terms, agreed upon in the Paris Club in December 1994, for such countries, with a view to helping them exit from the rescheduling process on the basis of sound economic policies in those countries, thus contributing to the promotion of their prospects for resuming growth and development;

Recognizes the efforts of indebted developing countries in fulfilling their commitments on debt servicing despite the incurring of a high social cost and, in this regard, encourages private creditors and, in particular, commercial banks to continue their initiatives and efforts to address the commercial debt problems of middle-income developing countries;

Invites creditor countries, private banks and multilateral financial institutions, within their prerogatives, to consider continuing the initiatives and efforts to address the commercial debt problems of the least developed countries and the requests for continued mobilization of resources through the Debt-reduction Facility of the International Development Association in order to help eligible least developed countries reduce their commercial debt;

Notes the high proportion of multilateral debt of a number of developing countries and invites international financial institutions to examine proposals to tackle the problems of those countries with regard to multilateral debt, taking into account the specific situation of each country, while preserving the preferred creditor status of the multilateral financial institutions, in order to ensure that they can continue to provide concessional financing to those developing countries to assist their development;

Reaffirms the mid-term global review of the implementation of the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the 1990s, in particular the appropriate actions in favour of least developed countries concerning their official bilateral, commercial and multilateral debt;

Notes with concern the continuing burden of debt and debt-service obligations of middle-income countries, including in particular those in Africa, and encourages creditors, including multilateral financial institutions and commercial banks, to continue to address their obligations effectively;

Stresses the importance of continued concessional Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility lending operations for low-income countries;

Also stresses the need for existing facilities to provide debt-relief measures through various debt conversion programmes, where possible, such as debt-equity swaps, debt-for-nature swaps, debt-for-child-development swaps, and other debt-for-development swaps, to be widely implemented so that the countries concerned may be ably assisted in their development efforts, as well as to support measures in favour of the most vulnerable segments of the societies of those countries and to develop techniques of debt conversion applied to social development programmes and projects, in conformity with the priorities of the World Summit for Social Development, held at Copenhagen in March 1995;

Further stresses the need for, in addition to debt-relief measures that include debt and debt-service reduction, new financial flows to debtor developing countries, and urges creditor countries and multilateral financial institutions to continue to extend concessional financial assistance, particularly to the least developed countries, in order to support the implementation of economic reforms, stabilization and structural adjustment programmes and the eradication of poverty by the developing countries so as to enable them to extricate themselves from the debt overhang and to assist them in achieving sustained economic growth and sustainable development;

Stresses the need for the expeditious conclusion of the ongoing work of the International Monetary Fund, in close collaboration with the World Bank, on the steps to address the problems of those low-income countries that are undertaking strong adjustment and reform programmes but whose debt situation, including debt to multilateral institutions, may prove unsustainable, even after debt reduction on the Naples terms, within this context urging donor countries to fulfil promptly their commitments to the tenth replenishment of the International Development Association and to support a significant replenishment through the eleventh replenishment of the Association, and requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-first session on the outcome of the meeting of the Development Committee scheduled for April 1996;

Notes the initiative to develop new, parallel financing arrangements, complementary to the General Arrangements to Borrow, with the aim of doubling the resources currently available under the General Arrangements to Borrow;

Recognizes that the evolving debt strategy must be accompanied by a favourable and supportive international environment, including the full implementation of the results of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations, and the Marrakesh ministerial decisions in favour of the least developed countries and net food-importing developing countries;⁶

⁶See Legal Instruments Embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations, done at Marrakesh on 15 April 1994 (GATT secretariat publication, Sales No. GATT/1994-7).

Invites the International Monetary Fund to continue devising concrete policy measures and actions to address the problems faced by indebted developing countries;

Underscores the need for encouragement of private flows to all countries, in particular developing countries, while reducing the risks of volatility;

Stresses the urgent need to continue to provide social safety nets to vulnerable groups most adversely affected by the implementation of economic reform programmes in the debtor countries, in particular low-income groups;

Urges the international community, particularly the creditor countries and multilateral institutions, as well as commercial banks and other lending institutions, when continuing the implementation of various measures aimed at contributing to effective, equitable, development-oriented and durable solutions to the external debt and debt-servicing problems of developing countries, as well as when exploring the need for additional and innovative measures to alleviate substantially the external debt and debt-service burden of developing countries, to ensure that the debt strategy evolved through the years is fully implemented and taken into account;

Recognizes the urgent need for the international community to assist developing countries, in particular the poorest and heavily indebted countries, in mobilizing the resources needed for their development efforts, and also recognizes that effective, equitable, development-oriented and durable solutions to the external debt and debt-servicing problems of developing countries could contribute towards releasing domestic resources and sustaining their development efforts, in particular those for social development;

Calls upon the international community, including the relevant institutions, to build upon the momentum gained from the various meetings that have addressed debt issues and to address the external debt and debt-servicing problems of developing countries, particularly those of the least developed countries, in the elaboration of an agenda for development;

Also calls upon the international community, including the United Nations system, and invites the Bretton Woods institutions, as well as the private sector, to take urgent measures and action for the implementation of the commitments, agreements and decisions of the major United Nations conferences and summits organized since the beginning of the 1990s on development, addressing, inter alia, and where appropriate, the question of external debt;

Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-first session on the implementation of the present resolution.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What other versions does this mandate have?

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

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