The World Bank said Thursday it was waiving (indstiller) Haitis debt payments for the next five years due to the devastation caused by the earthquake and is studying efforts to cancel the Caribian nations remaining debt.
The Washington-based multilateral lender said Haitis debt to the World Bank, which is interest-free, is about 38 million US dollar or around four percent of Haitis total external debt.
Haiti was granted 1,2 billion US dollar in debt relief last June (2009).
Since 2005, the World Banks financial support for Haiti, which was 363 million dollar, has been carried out through grants. This does not include the 100 million in grants announced on January 13, 2010, in response to the earthquake.
Meanwhile, International Monetary Fund (IMF) spokeswoman Caroline Atkinson said that the IMFs proposed 100 million dollar loan for Haiti will be considered for approval on January 27 by its board, made up of the Fund’s member countries.
Haitis interest-free (rentefrie) loan is part of a move announced by the IMF last year in the midst of the financial crisis to freeze interest payments on loans to all of its poorest borrowers until the end of 2011. After that, interest payments will resume at a low rate of 0,5 percent or less.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
