A group of rich countries in the Paris Club said that it would cancel much of the debt owed by Sudan to help the country back into the international fold. Talks that ended late on Thursday “allowed us to reach an historic agreement … to manage Sudan’s debt,” said Emmanuel Moulin, head of the Paris Club of roughly 20 wealthy nations.
Members of the group aim to coordinate “sustainable solutions” to states facing financial problems. “Of debts that total $23.5 billion, we have canceled $14.1 billion and will reschedule the rest,” said Moulin, who is also director of the French Treasury. At some point in the future, most of the rescheduled debt will likely be canceled as well, he added.
A statement issued later by the Paris Club “congratulated Sudan for the strong measures of poverty reduction and ambitious economic reforms” that led to the decision.
Based on the terms of a Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, it said that the remaining debt reduction could be achieved by June 2024 at the latest.
“On an exceptional basis, considering Sudan’s very limited capacity of payment, and provided that it continues to implement satisfactorily an IMF supported program, no payments are expected from Sudan until at least Dec. 1, 2024,” the statement said.
