Tinaye Agere
Business Reporter
DEVELOPING countries are grappling with increased debt vulnerabilities that are hindering development and industrialisation in the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube has said.
Addressing delegates at the Southern African Development Community Industrialisation Week (SIW) and Investment Conference in Harare on Monday morning, Minister Ncube said: “It is apparent that developing countries are grappling with heightened debt vulnerabilities as indicated by subdued solvency and liquidity indicators,” he said.
“In this regard, debt restructuring initiatives and more effective implementation of debt relief programmes, such as the G20 framework, would free up financial resources, which can be channelled towards industrialisation, drive economic progress and development.
“We have argued in other fora globally that the G20 framework needs to be reformed.”
Against this background, he said, it was imperative to reform the global financial architecture to support the industrialisation agenda in the region.
“The global financial architecture is tilted against the developing countries, from a low share of SDRs quotas that were extended by the IMF,” he said.
“Three years ago, Zimbabwe used to borrow at something like 8 percent per annum. Right now, we are borrowing at about 12 percent, and this has nothing to do with the credit rating of the country. Any other country can tell you a similar story.”
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