April 28, 2020
The Miami Herald interviewed Eric LeCompte on coronavirus impacts on the economy in Latin America and the Caribbean. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
Coronavirus could push Latin America, Caribbean into deepest recession since 1930s
But the only country in the region that might benefit from that measure is Haiti, said Eric LeCompte, a United Nations finance expert and director of the Jubilee USA Network, a religious development group that has been a longtime advocate for debt forgiveness.
“Many of the Latin American and Caribbean countries don’t qualify for any type of debt relief measure because they are considered too wealthy,” LeCompte said. “We’d like to see it extended to Ecuador, Bolivia, Grenada, Jamaica and other countries that could benefit from a debt standstill but need even more relief.”
And even what might be offered to Haiti isn’t enough, donors said, given the nation’s fragile economic state. During a recent emergency meeting of the CARICOM bloc of Caribbean countries, leaders agreed to lobby the G20 and international finance institutions for full-fledged debt write-offs and emergency funding for the rest of the Caribbean.
Also this month, the International Monetary Fund began offering below-market-rate emergency loans that might allow some countries to bolster health services or provide U.S.-style stimulus packages to keep workers employed. For many nations it’s simply piling debt on top of unsustainable debt, LeCompte said, but “it’s better than nothing.”
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April 17, 2020
The New York Times, Fox News, ABC and the Associated Press featured Eric LeCompte's remarks on IMF debt relief. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
IMF, World Bank Pledge Help Amid Calls for More Debt Relief
Eric LeCompte, executive director of Jubilee USA, a religious development organization, said it is still a good signal that the closing communique directed the lending organizations to explore providing debt relief to a larger group of nations.
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April 17, 2020
Devex interviewed Eric LeCompte on the IMF and G20's use of debt relief as a response to COVID-19 and the global recession. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
G20, IMF deliver on debt relief, but more is needed, experts say
Debt relief frees up money immediately, allowing governments to use funds that had been reserved for debt repayment to address urgent needs and work to shore up their economies, said Eric LeCompte, the executive director of the Jubilee USA Network.
"While we see progress, we still need to answer a lot of questions. What about other developing countries and emerging markets who need relief? How will a process move forward to cut debt when debt is unsustainable for countries?" he said.
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April 17, 2020
The New York Times featured Eric LeCompte's thoughts on the IMF and it's response to COVID-19 and the global recession. Fox News, the Associated Press and thousands of other news outlets included Eric's thoughts in their stories. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
IMF, World Bank Pledge Help Amid Calls for More Debt Relief
Eric LeCompte, executive director of Jubilee USA, a religious development organization, said it is still a good signal that the closing communique directed the lending organizations to explore providing debt relief to a larger group of nations.
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here.
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April 15, 2020
The news wire service Thomson Reuters included Eric's analysis of the G20 announcement halting debt payments and interest for poor countries affected by the coronavirus. The story was shared by news outlets around the world. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
G20 countries agree debt freeze for world's poorest countries
Eric LeCompte, executive director at the non-profit Jubilee USA Network, estimated the agreement could ultimately result in $25 billion of relief for the poorest countries.
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April 15, 2020
Marketwatch cited Eric LeCompte's comments on the G-20 announcement to halt debt payments for 76 poor countries affected by the coronavirus. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
G-20 has agreed to debt standstill for world’s poorest countries, IMF and World Bank heads say
Eric LeCompte, the executive director of Jubilee USA network, said he was encouraged that the two organizations were urging “all types of creditors to come together to relive the debts of the poorest countries,” but noted the devil was in the details.
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April 15, 2020
Inter Press Service featured the IMF's decision to halt debt payments for 25 poor countries affected by the coronavirus. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
FMI alivia deuda de 25 países pobres
La decisión del FMI “es un paso increíblemente positivo. Estos países necesitan reforzar sus sistemas de salud de inmediato y la cancelación de la deuda por seis meses les ayudará”, dijo Eric LeCompte, director de la coalición estadounidense Jubilee, que trabaja por la condonación de las deudas de los países del Sur.
“Muchos de estos países tienen menos de 50 camas de cuidados intensivos”, las que se requieren para tratar a pacientes graves de covid-19, recordó LeCompte.
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April 15, 2020
The BBC interviewed Eric LeCompte in this special 5-minute BBC segment on the next phase of our campaigns on global crisis protections, debt, SDRs and Jubilee USA's coronavirus campaigns. Eric LeCompte's remarks are between minute 1:00 and minute 6:04. Listen here.
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April 15, 2020
Agence France-Presse cited Eric LeCompte on the G20 decision to freeze debt payments and interest for poor countries affected by the coronavirus. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
G20 avala suspensión temporal del pago de la deuda para los países pobres
Eric LeCompte, director de la coalición de organizaciones de lucha contra la pobreza Jubilee USA, indicó que lo que es una novedad y es "emocionante" de los comentarios de Georgieva y de Malpass es que están llamando a todos los tipos de acreedores a generar un acuerdo conjunto para aliviar la deuda de los países más pobres.
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April 14, 2020
U.S. News and World Report quotes Eric LeCompte of the IMF economic forecast in light of the coronavirus. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full story.
IMF Predicts Global Coronavirus Crisis Akin to the Great Depression
"This is the most frightening news the Fund has ever released on the status of our global economy," Eric LeCompte, executive director of the Jubilee USA coalition, said in a statement on Tuesday. "When you analyze what the IMF is actually saying, the message is things could get even worse, and they really don't know how bad it can actually get."
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