WRITTEN QUESTION No. 983/98 by Eryl McNALLY to the Commission. Jubilee 2000 - a debt-free start for a billion people
Date: 1998-04-02
Institutions: European Parliament, MCNALLY
Subjects: EU initiative, economic reform, external debt, humanitarian aid, indebtedness, poverty, redemption

C 386/68

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

11.12.98

(98/C 386/087)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0983/98

by Eryl McNally (PSE) to the Commission

(2 April 1998)

Subject: Jubilee 2000 › a debt-free start for a billion people

One of my constituents has enquired about Europe(cid:146)s position on supporting the campaign to make a one-off
cancellation by the year 2000 of the backlog of unpayable debt owed by the world(cid:146)s poorest countries. This is a
campaign known as Jubilee 2000.

In the light of the above, what commitment, if any, does the Commission feel Europe should make to assist such
humanitarian initiatives?

Answer given by Mr Pinheiro on behalf of the Commission

(25 May 1998)

The Commission shares the concerns of the Jubilee 2000 campaign regarding debt problems in the poorest
countries. It has been increasingly recognised that despite progress made during recent years in providing more
generous debt relief measures and despite their efforts to implement economic reforms, a number of poor
countries are still constrained by excessive external debt burdens.

It should be noted that the Community is primarily a donor of grant resources and a very small creditor in this
context. Solutions to the debt problems of the poorest countries will require concerted action among all creditors
in order to have the necessary impact. The debt initiative for the heavily indebted poor countries (the HIPC debt
initiative) which was launched in 1996, is a framework for such co-ordinated action. The aim of this initiative is to
reduce the debt burdens of the heavily indebted poor countries to sustainable levels and thereby to support their
efforts to implement economic reforms and to reduce poverty. The Commission strongly welcomes this initiative
and is politically very committed to participating and playing its part in it.

The Council confirmed, on 12 February 1998, the principle of such participation with respect to Community
claims on HIPCs. It is now on the verge of adopting the legal basis for it. A formal proposal for a Council decision
was transmitted by the Commission to the Council, which, when adopted, will allow for an actual prepayment of
some Community claims on HIPCs.

It is to be noted that the Community decided to participate both as a creditor and as a donor in addressing the debt
problems of poor indebted countries. It decided to reallocate the breakdown of the structural adjustment facility
(SAF) allocation and to increase by 10 to 15 % the amount devoted to countries qualifying for the HIPC initiative.
By doing so, the Commission created a link between HIPC qualification and enhanced support to social
programmes implemented in the recipient countries (counterpart funds created by Community(cid:146)s structural
adjustment programmes are generally devoted to social sector spending).

The HIPC initiative and the above-mentioned SAF reallocation are clearly in the spirit of the Jubilee
2000 campaign. It may be less far-reaching, but is also realistic, being based on an agreement by governments
and multilateral creditors to take action in a concerted way to help countries making serious development efforts.