Washington DC - On Sunday, former Indiana Senator Richard Lugar (R) died. Lugar sponsored and led Jubilee USA legislation and efforts on debt relief, anti-corruption, preventing financial crisis, tax evasion and the Jubilee Act on responsible lending and borrowing.

"Senator Lugar was a bridge builder and defender of the vulnerable.

"Lugar was a leader of legislation to prevent financial crisis, provide debt relief for poor countries and make our financial system more responsible and transparent.

"Currently in Congress we face such polarization and so many divides. In Washington DC, we need his kind of leadership again."

Religious Development Group Calls for Debt and Disaster Relief

Washington DC - Category-4 Cyclone Kenneth hit Mozambique Thursday night, the second severe storm to hit the country in six weeks. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 30,000 people were evacuated because of Cyclone Kenneth and another 70,000 people are still in harm's way. The hurricane-strength storm is predicted to drop twice as much rainfall as Cyclone Idai, which devastated the East African nation in March. Mozambique is still recovering from Cyclone Idai and the International Monetary Fund loaned $118.2 million for Idai rebuilding efforts.

"It's time to move away from loans for Mozambique and start the process of debt relief," said United Nations debt expert Eric LeCompte who heads the religious development group Jubilee USA. "This cyclone was the first major storm to hit Mozambique with hurricane strength in 60 years and as one of the poorest countries in the world, they don't have the resources to respond."

The United Nations Development Programme ranks Mozambique as the 9th least developed country in the world out of 189 ranked countries. On March 14th and 15th Cyclone Idai made landfall, killing over 700 people and causing an estimated $2 billion in damage.

In 2016 the IMF stopped financing Mozambique after over $1 billion in secret loans were discovered to outfit fishing boats into military crafts.

"Debt relief is an effective form of disaster aid and must be an important part of Mozambique's recovery," said LeCompte.

Dear Friends,

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA, recently spoke with ValueWalk about the policy challenges faced in achieving the sustainable development goals. Read an excerpt below and follow this link to the full article.

As Jamie Dimon Says Lehman Won’t Happen Again, IMF Analysis Points To Next Global Financial Crisis

“Developing countries are wrestling with crisis,” UN sovereign debt analyst and Executive Director of Jubliee USA Eric LeCompte told ValueWalk, pointing to a virus that could quickly spread to the developed world. “There is more than one canary in this coal mine.”

The IMF has released a series of reports on unsustainable debt levels in developing economies that it says makes the global environment “unsettled.”

LeCompte notes that even with a relatively strong global economy, many developing nations are finding trouble with GDP to debt levels above 100% and 17 countries are in default. He was moderating an IMF panel discussion on the topic when unknown derivatives risk exposures tied to the debt was raised as an issue that could derail the economy, calling it “the scariest IMF meeting I’ve ever attended.”

The debt crisis is now engulfing 40% of low-income nations with the IMF concerned of rising debt levels in African nations that is even starting to impact wealthy regions such as Kenya and South Africa.  What also concerns LeCompte is how the debt problem is spreading in Latin America, right on the doorstep of the US. Brazil, El Salvador, Venezuela and Argentina are all showing signs of cracking under a mountain of debt. According to LeCompte,  three Latin American countries are beyond 70% debt to GDP.

Argentina, which lost a debt fight with hedge funds led in part by Paul Singer’s Elliott Management, is particularly hard hit. Investors are now pricing in a 49% chance of default, up from 22% a year ago, according to credit-default swaps pricing.

“In Argentina, public money (from the IMF) is bailing out hedge funds,” LeCompte quipped, noting that solutions for another global debt crisis have not been put in place.

Read more here. 

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA, recently spoke with Devex about the policy challenges faced in achieving the sustainable development goals. Read an excerpt below and follow this link to the full article.

What will it take to fix flailing SDG funding?

While the financing for development process has helped build consensus around several issues, the challenge is that very little about it is binding, said Eric LeCompte, executive director of the financial-reform focused alliance Jubilee USA. Addis brought up illicit financial flows but created no mechanism to support countries in retaining their resources, he said. The Addis agreement also called for debt restructuring to be improved, which needs to be done, especially with growing indebtedness.

“Across the board — particularly with tax, transparency, debt policies — we are at a point where we need to move beyond voluntary mechanisms because we don’t have the ability to reach the SDGS,” LeCompte said.

Read more here. 

New York City - After months of negotiations and four days of formal meetings, the United Nations voted on development policies at the fourth UN Financing for Development Forum. The UN meetings convene world leaders, ministers, governments, the IMF, World Bank and development groups. The annual process attempts to implement the 2015 Addis Ababa Action Agenda, an international agreement that includes policies on debt, tax, trade, transparency and aid.

"If we can improve trade, debt and tax policies, we can mobilize the resources to end extreme poverty and achieve the UN development goals," stated Jubilee USA Executive Director Eric LeCompte. LeCompte helped forge the 2015 UN Addis Ababa Financing for Development agreement. "The developing world loses more than a trillion dollars annually because of unsustainable debts, tax evasion, tax avoidance, corruption, trade practices and a lack of loan and budget transparency."

The UN meetings took place days after the IMF issued two reports warning of a potential financial crisis due to risky market behaviors and high sovereign and corporate debt.

"The same financial and economic policies that can fund development are some of the same policies that can prevent financial crisis," noted LeCompte who addressed the UN body on Thursday. "While these meetings are helpful for education and to build greater consensus, implementation is not moving quickly enough."

Read Eric LeCompte's United Nations statement here

(Remarks as prepared for delivery)

Eric LeCompte
Executive Director
Jubilee USA Network

April 18th, 2019

Thank-you Mr. Chair.

Washington DC - World leaders, Finance Ministers, industry representatives and development groups are meeting at the Spring World Bank and IMF Meetings.

"The IMF is urging us to do all we can to prevent another financial crisis. Reducing risky market behavior and tackling unsustainable government and corporate debts are priorities to prevent another financial crisis.

"In two reports this week, the IMF analyzes our current economic situation against conditions that led to the 2008 financial crisis. They are worried and don't want history to repeat itself.

"The last financial crisis drove nearly 100 million people, mostly women and children, into extreme poverty. Our world can not afford another crisis.

"High debt loads, financial transparency policies and trade tensions were key focuses of the meetings. We need policies that can cut unsustainable debt, curb tax evasion, avoidance and corruption to raise revenue and build a trade regime that protects workers and the poor."

Read the full IMF Communique here: https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2019/04/13/communique-of-the-thirty-ninth-meeting-of-the-imfc

Read the Jubilee USA release on the World Economic Outlook Report

Read Jubilee USA's release on the Global Financial Stability Report

Strengthening the FfD Follow-up Process: Proposals and Plans from Civil Society

Tuesday, 16 April, 1:15 – 2:30 p.m.
Trusteeship Council Chamber

Tax and Illicit Financial Flows: Following up on FfD and SDG commitments

Monday, 15 April, 1.15-2.30 pm
Trusteeship Council Chamber

Reaching the furthest behind: Is blending fit for purpose?

Tuesday, 16 April, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.
Conference Room 8

Trade and Investment Policy: A Critical Ingredient in Harnessing FfD Instruments to Achieve the SDGs

Wednesday, 17 April, 8.00 am – 9.30 am
Conference Room 8

The new wave of debt and financial crises: how to tackle it?

Wednesday, 17 April, 1:15 – 2:30 p.m.
Trusteeship Council Chamber

Sustainable Investments & Systemic Reform: Policy and Regulatory Challenges

Wednesday, 17 April, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.
Conference Room 5

IMF/World Bank Annual Spring Meetings