A Critical Appraisal of the MDGS Global Partnership for Development (Goal 8)

Many development agencies and sceptics have expressed widespread doubts regarding the ability of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC) launched in 1996 and its successor the Enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (EHIPC) to achieve the promised objective of a "robust exit from the burden of unsustainable debts" for developing countries. Problems associated with the design and implementation of the initiative suggest that neither of the two HIPC versions has succeeded in providing an adequate response to the Third World ’s debt overhang. An analysis of key debt indicators shows that external debt and debt-servicing problems are most severe and persistent in the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs), the target group of the HIPC Initiative.

This series is a review of country experiences with HIPC which we hope will help bring up alternative proposals and appropriate criteria to determine a country’s debt sustainability.

Foreign debt is illegitimate if it is against national law; it is unfair, improper or objectionable; or if it infringes upon public policy (Hanlon, 2002). Four categories of illegitimate debt have been identified. These categories are unacceptable loans, unacceptable conditions, inappropriate loans and inappropriate conditions (Hanlon, 2002).

These two studies elaborate on the concept of illegitimate debt and analyse and review information, perceptions and perspectives of the concept of illegitimate debt. They also attempt to identify and quantify the DRC Congo's and Malawi’s illegitimate debt and explain its structure.....Read more about DRC, Read more about Malawi