NAIROBI, April 26 (Xinhua) -- Experts and officials on Thursday urged multilateral lending institutions, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to prioritize sustainable management of Africa's debts to prevent a fiscal crisis.
The call comes ahead of the International Development Association's (IDA) African Heads of State Summit scheduled in Nairobi, Kenya, next week. African leaders, finance ministers and donors are expected to attend the two-day meeting of the IDA, which is an arm of the World Bank that provides grants and concessional financing to developing countries.
Experts said that external lenders should provide loans and grants that contribute to Africa's prosperity without escalating its debt levels. Mavis Owusu-Gyamfi, the executive vice president of the African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET), said that financing from multilateral lenders should not burden the continent with debt but rather facilitate economic transformation and improve social sectors like education and health.
"These concessional loans and grants from IDA should propel our economies towards growth, help us navigate shocks, and create jobs for the youth through regional integration," Owusu-Gyamfi said during a virtual forum in Nairobi.
Owusu-Gyamfi highlighted the growing calls for reform in the global financial architecture to address Africa's debt management challenges, especially in the face of the climate crisis, lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and global inflation.
Jason Braganza, the executive director of the African Forum and Network on Debt and Development, said that financing from multilateral lenders should support Africa in responding to climate change, diversifying its economies and adding value to agricultural commodities.
Lenders should support indigenous manufacturing, youth reskilling and the facilitation of the movement of goods and services to sustain growth and reduce debt levels in Africa, Braganza said. ■