Former African heads of state call for urgent action to address debt crisis

JOHANNESBURG - Some former African heads of state have called for bold and urgent action to assist emerging economies buckling under an excessive debt burden.

Among a range of other issues faced by G20 member states, the calls by African leaders are part of efforts to draw global leaders gathered in Cape Town this week into a solution that will help address the continent's debt crisis.

They have now launched the African Leaders Debt Relief Initiative (ALDRI) on the sidelines of the G20 finance track meeting in Cape Town on Thursday.

While the African leaders that launched the initiative are not part of G20, South Africa is using its presidency to put an African agenda on the table.

Africa is trapped by a crippling debt crisis, possibly the worst in 80 years.

The high debt servicing costs are crowding out important social spending on health and education, sparking further calls for significant debt relief to unlock the necessary funding to hit the mark on some development goals.

Under the ALDRI, former African heads of state have had a two-pronged proposal.

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The first is for comprehensive debt restructuring for highly indebted countries.

This includes a predictable, fair and inclusive debt restructuring process involving all creditors.

The second approach is lowering the cost of capital for all developing countries – including debt suspension mechanisms to create fiscal space for development and climate financing.

The modalities of the initiative are yet to be established.

The initiative is co-signed by 6 former heads of state, including Nigeria's Olusegun Obasanjo, Senegal's Macky Small, Malawi's Joyce Banda, Tanzania's Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, Ghana'sNana Akufo-Addo, Mauritius' Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, as well as Ethopia’s Former Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and Nigeria's former vice President Yemi Osinbajo.