Germany will forgive Liberias entire 230 million US dollar in debt to Berlin.
“Germany announces that it would forgive 100 percent of the bilateral debts owned in the context of the HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) process”, said the final statement of a conference of Liberias donors in Washington D.C. The HIPC initiative offers debt relief to governments that agree to meet International Monetary Fund (IMF) conditions and to implement economic reforms.
Germanys announcement came one day after the US said it would erase the war-ravaged West African countrys 391 million dollar debt to the American Treasury.
The two-day conferences final statement also said the US government would request 35 million dollar from Congress to help Liberia with its repayment arrears (restancer) to the IMF and World Bank.
The Final communique further noted, that Britain also provided debt relief, although specific figures were not available.
The meeting recognized the “tremendous progress” made by the Liberian government during its first year and “strongly supported” the priorities outlined in its development strategy.
Mats Karlsson, a senior West African expert at the World Bank, said Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleafs presentation to the conference was greeted with “fantastic enthusiasm”.
He said the Liberian delegation provided a degree of detailed information about the countrys situation that is rare for a post conflict country. Donor countries and institutions “have something firm to stand on” as they assess possible financing for future projects, Karlsson said.
– They came with a very solid product, he said, referring to the Liberian delegation. He added that the conference was designed mostly to gather information rather than to elicit (skaffe) pledges (tilsagn) of monetary support.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
