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February 08, 2005
And forgive us our debts...
Good news: G7 finance ministers have backed plans to write off up to 100% of the debts of 37 of the world's poorest countries. Read more about it at the Jubilee website. Debt forgiveness is of course a Christian principle, building upon the concept of Jublilee found in Lev 25-26, and an expression of a Christian commitment to justice.
Currently, about 52 poor countries are in a debt crisis. They are forced to spend huge sums repaying old debts to the rich world while millions live in poverty. A child dies every 3 seconds because of preventable poverty, while every day Sub-Saharan Africa pays millions of dollars to the rich world in debt service. Many countries are forced to spend more on debt than on healthcare or education. You can read some background on the debt crisis.
So, this is a good start to the year, and is of course good news for my adopted home of Burkina Faso. There is of course a long way yet to go. As part of his proposed "new Marshall Plan" Gordon Brown is also asking the G7 to provide an extra $50bn (£26.69bn) a year in aid for the next decade. And then there is the trade issue yet to address. If you haven't yet done so, please join the Make Poverty History campaign to seek a better deal for the poor this year.
Posted by Keith at February 8, 2005 07:51 AM
