On The Path to Debt Cancellation for Haiti

February 8th - This weekend the Group of Seven (G7) finance ministers announced their support for Haiti's debt cancellation. This comes after US Treasury's announcement on Friday. Read our press release here.

Jubilee USA has called on the Obama administration provide massive assistance for relief and reconstruction in the form of grants, not loans and cancel the rest of Haiti's debt to the international financial institutions. To read more, visit our Haiti page.

In June 2009, Jubilee USA supporters and partners celebrated $1.2 billion in debt cancellation for Haiti, erasing some of Haiti's debt. Now we must continue to see that Haiti breaks from the chains of debt once and for all.

PRESS RELEASE Jubilee Welcomes US Support for Haiti Debt Cancellation
READ Congressional Sign-On and Organizational Sign-on Letters to Treasury
TAKE ACTION Advocate for Haiti
WATCH Forgive Haiti's debt? Jubilee USA Network on MSNBC
LEARN more about Haiti, the Debt Crisis, and the work of Jubilee activists

Jubilee Act Introduced in the House of Representatives

December 16 - Today the Jubilee Act for Responsible Lending and Expanded Debt Cancellation (HR 4405) was introduced in the House of Representatives.

The bi-partisan bill expands critical debt cancellation to 22 additional impoverished countries left out of previous debt relief deals and calls for an end to harmful economic conditions and an audit of past odious and illegitimate debts.

TAKE ACTION Please take thirty seconds to send a message to your Representative asking him/her to sign on as an early cosponsor to the Jubilee Act.

Last year, the Jubilee Act passed in the House of Representatives and the Foreign Relations Committee in the Senate.

Vulture Funds Prey on Liberia

December 1st- This past week a British court ruled against Liberia and awarded two Vulture Funds $20 million from a debt that dates back to 1978.

Liberia sits in the bottom 15 for worst living standards in the world; the $20 million siphoned off by the Vulture Funds is equal to 105% of the country's education budget and 155% of its health budget in 2008.

TAKE ACTION Please act now to stop this type of Vulture profiteering from world's poorest
READ Jubilee USA's press release on Liberia

Together with Africa Action and TransAfrica Forum, Jubilee USA continues its campaign to stop Vulture Funds from preying on impoverished countries.

The Stop VULTURE Funds Act (HR 2932), is a bill in the House of Representatives that would prevent vulture funds from making excessive profit off the debt of the world's poorest nations. The bill was re-introduced this spring by Representatives Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Spencer Bachus (R-AL).

CLICK here to learn more about Liberia's encounter with the Vulture Funds
DOWNLOAD Jubilee's new grassroots fact sheet

November - It is time for global change – time for a global economy that works for all. It is time to break the chains of international debt to fight poverty and injustice.

Join Jubilee USA in our Change, Not Chains Campaign to urge the Obama administration to support expanded debt cancellation and tell Congress to pass the Jubilee Act for Responsible Lending & Expanded Debt Cancellation.

This fall, Jubilee has been mobilizing members across the country to send postcards to their Representatives & Senators, to Stand Up & Take Action, to educate their communities on the debt crisis, and work to make real structural global change.

TAKE ACTION sign an online postcard to Congress today!
LEARN MORE on the Change, Not Chains main page
GET STARTED TODAY order postcards by emailing carly(at)jubileeusa.org or calling 202.546.4470.

Stand Up Against Debt & Global Poverty

October 16 - 18th - This weekend Jubilee activists made history this past weekend. We joined more than 173 MILLION PEOPLE across the globe at "Stand Up, Take Action, End Poverty Now!" events around the country, setting a new world record for the largest mobilization in history!

Jubilee USA Network congregations and activists around the country were an integral part of this remarkable mobilization. Across the United States 92 events were held and more than 5,000 people raised their voices together and stood up against poverty.

DID YOU STAND UP? Send us your story here
TAKE ACTION by signing an online postcard
LEARN MORE here

G20: Making the Grade for the World’s Poorest?

October 3rd - Jubilee USA's new report “Falling Short: A Progress Report on the G-20’s Commitments to the World’s Poorest” calls on G-20 leaders to speed up progress on existing development commitments and to announce greater steps to address the economic crisis faced by the world’s poorest. Jubilee USA traveled to Pittsburgh last week to participate in civil-society meetings and educational events.

Neil Watkins, Executive Director, Jubilee USA Network says: “A new, bolder approach is urgently needed. . . Without a change in course, we are on the verge of a new debt crisis in the developing world.”

CLICK to read the Progress Report or summary and full report
CLICK to read press release
READ Eurodad & Bretton Woods Project's analysis on G-20 outcomes

Another Victory: Liberia Eliminates $1.2 Billion in Commercial Debt

: Jubilee Activists Protest at Treasury Department in 2007

April 17th - Liberia has reached an agreement with its commercial creditors (including some potential “vulture funds”) to eliminate $1.2 billion of its illegitimate commercial debt!

Jubilee USA and partners have been raising the call for total cancellation of Liberia’s odious and illegitimate debt for several years. Together, we helped secure the clearance of Liberia’s arrears to the IMF, World Bank and African Development Bank in late 2007.

Now, Liberia has taken the next step on its long journey to freedom from crushing debt by buying back nearly all of its commercial debt from its creditors, some of whom were vulture funds.

Liberia was able to negotiate a deal to pay its creditors only 3 cents for every dollar “owed.” And this payment will be covered by donors, including the World Bank and the US government, who have given Liberia a $38 million dollar grant to pay off its commercial creditors. Liberia’s debt burden is reduced from $4.9 billion to $1.8 billion.

READ Jubilee USA’s press release, and the statement from the Liberian government.

Briefing Notes: Jubilee USA Releases Policy Reports

Read the series of six BRIEFING NOTES that Jubilee USA released last year. These short policy papers are designed to provide quality background information on some of the key policy issues that Jubilee is working on. Also, access our policy archive for past policy papers.

JAN.08 BRIEFING NOTE ONE: Expanded Debt Cancellation: A Key Tool to Fight Global Poverty reviews the literature and makes the case for expanded debt cancellation beyond the current HIPC Initiative. DOWNLOAD

FEB.08 BRIEFING NOTE TWO: Recent Development on IMF Gold Sales and Debt Cancellation, looks at recent proposals from the IMF to sell some of its gold and the implications for debt campaigners. DOWNLOAD

FEB.08 BRIEFING NOTE THREE: Are IMF and World Bank Economic Policy Conditions Undermining the Impact of Debt Cancellation? contains the latest information on IMF and other economic policy conditions such as privatization that are limiting the benefits of debt cancellation. DOWNLOAD

APRIL.08 BRIEFING NOTE FOUR: Vulture Funds & Poor Country Debt: Recent Developments & Policy Responses explains the activity of vulture funds, identifies countries at-risk and what a coalition of organizations, including Jubilee USA, is doing to publicize and curtail vulture fund activity. DOWNLOAD

APRIL.08 BRIEFING NOTE FIVE: Recent Developments On Odious & Illegitimate Debt explores the latest developments on the issue of odious and illegitimate debt highlighting the push for the cancellation of Iraq’a debt, which was led by the United States, and Ecuador’s precedent-setting debt audit. DOWNLOAD

JUNE.08 BRIEFING NOTE SIX: World Bank Group Resources & Debt Cancellation identifies how the World Bank could mobilize up to $23.4 billion total of its additional resources by 2020 which could be used to cover the cost of expanded World Bank debt cancellation without compromising the Bank's operational capacity or financial strength. DOWNLOAD