Reframing the debate: the debt relief initiative and new normative values in the governance of third world debt

2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celine Tan

AbstractThe introduction of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative in 1996 established landmark legal and policy innovations both in the regulatory landscape of sovereign debt and in the framework of international development finance. As the HIPC framework draws to a close, this paper reviews the impact of this initiative on the regulation of sovereign debt, in particular the governance of third world debt. The paper considers the implications of the initiative's explicit link between debt restructuring and development policy and its incorporation of non-traditional normative values, such as poverty reduction and participatory development, into the legal and political discourse of sovereign debt. The paper argues that while the changes which brought about the HIPC initiative have led to a number of key initiatives to reform the governance of third world debt, they have also had the contradictory effect of reinforcing the core disciplinary discourses and pre-existing practices of the sovereign debt regime.

2005 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 108-111
Author(s):  
Faheem Jehangir Khan

Poverty is one of the most depressing global problems in the world today. Therefore, there is a growing consensus among development organisations that poverty alleviation should be the primary goal of cooperation between the rich and the poor countries. This consensus is due to the awareness that a widening international income gap threatens the well-being of people in the rich countries. In this volume, the author, Philip Kircher, offers a comprehensive study on the evolution, the content, the different national accentuations, and the problem of the international consensus on poverty alleviation, and provides a systematic analysis of today’s donor strategies for development cooperation for poverty reduction. The study focuses specifically on the strategic positions of the World Bank, the Department for International Development (DFID) of the United Kingdom, the Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) of Germany, and the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA), as well as the positions presented by the governments of these countries in regard to development.


Author(s):  
Cephas Lumina ◽  
Mulesa Lumina

In recent years, there has been increasing attention to the problem of illicit financial outflows—broadly defined as funds that are illegally earned, transferred and utilized outside the country of origin in contravention of that country’s relevant legal framework. Illicit financial outflows divert resources away from activities that are essential for poverty reduction, sustainable development and the realisation of all human rights. They also contribute to the accumulation of external debt as governments that lack domestic resources as a result of these flows may resort to costly external borrowing. This chapter examines the nature of illicit financial flows, the factors that facilitate them and the measures taken by states, individually and collectively, to tackle them. It also discusses the impact of these flows on the realisation of human rights in the countries of origin and proposes concrete measures by which to curb illicit financial flows.


2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 47
Author(s):  
Musa Talba JIBIR ◽  
Salamatu Idris ISAH ◽  
Bello A. IBRAHIM

<p>Development Assistance is based on the idea that Rich Countries can and should help Poor countries to find the path to sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction—especially those that lack sources of capital. The paper began by reviewing the various sources and composition of net capital flows to developing countries and examined the respective roles of private and public flows in social program it further discussed the arguments and evidence on both sides of the question of whether aid is effective in promoting economic growth. The evidence of a direct effect on growth is inconclusive. Does this mean that aid should be cut back? Not necessarily. The impact of Aid should be evaluated not only in relation to its direct effects, but also in terms of its role in improving governance and economic management, and its contribution to social amenities such as basic education, health care facilities and access, water and infant mortality.</p>


2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 51-62
Author(s):  
Puspita Ayuningtyas Prawesti ◽  
Bambang Supriyono

Objective - This study attempts to provide comprehensive findings on the impact of several kinds of infrastructural developments and government budgets on specific purposes, as well as agricultural and non-agricultural productions, on poverty alleviation in Indonesia between 2002-2013. Methodology/Technique - This study uses macroeconomic data at a municipal level to provide more precise findings when comparing provincial and national level data. The study uses an adaptation of the theory of international development. Findings - This research shows that electricity and sanitation are more effective at eradicating poverty than water infrastructure. In addition, household access to infrastructure is more effective in combatting poverty than the government budget for infrastructure development. The study also performs correlation matrices, dividing the data into the western and eastern parts of Indonesia, to provide more robust findings. Agricultural production is more effective in the western part of Indonesia, yet non-agricultural production is more relevant towards poverty reduction in the eastern part of Indonesia. Novelty - This study yields some empirical results and conclusions for economic development in Indonesia, finding that the key problem lies in the effectiveness of budget arrangement within the framework of fiscal decentralization. Type of Paper: Empirical. Keywords: Infrastructure Development; Fiscal Decentralization; Government Expenditure; Poverty Rate; Poverty Reduction. JEL Classification: H54, P30, P36.


Policy Papers ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 2006 (48) ◽  
Author(s):  

This report reviews progress and issues in implementing the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative and reports on the implementation of the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI) by IDA, the IMF, and AfDF. It concludes that the volume of debt relief has increased significantly since the inception of the HIPC Initiative in 1996, thereby reducing HIPCs’ debt service burdens and allowing them to finance increased poverty reduction efforts. It also provides updated information on the costs of debt relief under the HIPC Initiative and the MDRI. Finally, it reviews the status of creditor participation and delivery of debt relief under the two initiatives, highlighting the challenges to increase the participation by non–Paris Club official bilateral and commercial creditors in the HIPC Initiative.


1981 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 603-631 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Lipson

Third World debt grew very rapidly in the 1970s. Many states, faced with sharply higher costs for energy and manufactured imports, borrowed aggressively in unregulated offshore capital markets. But what constrains sovereign states to repay this debt to commercial banks? Creditors do not turn to their home states to enforce payment; rather, the supervision of sovereign debt is largely a function of commercial banking arrangements, especially lenders' syndicates, and the International Monetary Fund's conditional lending. This political structure, which involves unified private sanctions, has ensured that no state defaults unless it is insolvent or is willing to accept a radical rupture in its international commercial relationships. When the problem is insolvency, creditors routinely convene ad hoc conferences. In conjunction with an IMFapproved stabilization program, creditors can renegotiate debt-service schedules and provide new financing if necessary. These arrangements are distinctive among international economic regimes because they rely on nonstate actors as the primary source of rules, norms, and procedures.


2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 152-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellen Gutterman

What explains longstanding UK non-compliance with international anti-bribery norms? Drawing on evidence from a comparative study of state compliance with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) anti-bribery Convention and building on the literature on ‘framing’ in Sociology and International Relations, this article identifies and illustrates the impact of strategic policy framing on UK anti-bribery policy in the years following the United Kingdom’s commitment to criminalize transnational business bribes, in 1997. The research examines the way in which anti-bribery proponents and opponents framed the practice of transnational bribery differently across four distinct policy contexts in the United Kingdom: international development and poverty reduction, domestic anti-corruption, strategic trade, and—following 11 September 2001—international anti-terrorism. The analysis shows that: (a) policy advocates’ choice of frame crucially affected the timing and scope of UK anti-bribery legislation and the extent of UK (non)compliance with international anti-corruption law; and (b) the expedient frame was not necessarily the most conducive to full compliance.


2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (3 (2017)) ◽  
pp. 284-301
Author(s):  
Viktoriia Adamyk

The problem of developing countries’ choice of the optimal foreign trade strategy through the prism of poverty reduction is considered. Attention is focused on the arguments in favour of free-trade and protectionism, as well as the positive and negative consequences of implementing the export-oriented growth strategy. The main conceptual approaches to the study of the impact of international trade liberalization on the economic situation of the developing countries are grouped together. Based on the analysis, it has been shown that the concept of ultra-liberalism is unacceptable for the development of Periphery countries in the context of increasing their welfare. The focus is on the implementation of an export-oriented strategy for the development of poor countries, and these groups of Periphery countries are presented, where this strategy can be successful. The main reasons for the low efficiency of export expansion of developing countries are determined, and the directions of its increase are proposed, which concern, first and foremost, the need for the internal institutional transformation of these countries.


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