Global News

Jubilee Scotland is part of a global network of campaigns that works towards a world free from debt slavery.

Bolivia on verge of debt investigation

29.1.2010 On December 30th, the Lower House of the Bolivian Parliament approved a resolution to recommend the Pluri-National Legislative Assembly to set up a special commission to audit Bolivia’s external debt. The decision is part of a process engaging Members of Parliament (MPs) and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) including the Jubilee Foundation, in association with national and international networks. For the full article follow this link to the EURODAD website.

Government Accused of Putting Business Before Human Rights and Enviroment

20.1.2010 The government has been accused of putting industry before human rights and the environment by allowing taxpayer money to be used in areas where standards are being watered down.

Haiti's debts: Chavez cancels, IMF refuse

26.1.2010 President Chavez of Venezuala has cancelled the debt owed by Haiti to Petrocaribe, the Venezuala-backed oil fund. Speaking at a meeting of foreign ministers from the ALBA trade alliance, Chavez in protested that "Haiti has no debt with Venezuela -- on the contrary, it is Venezuela that has a historic debt with Haiti." The cancellation will be worth about $295 miliion, approximately a third of Haiti's outstanding international debt. Follow this link to read the full story.

Report on IMF Shows Severe Practices Remain

14.10.2009 A recent report on the IMF has shown that although changes have been made, detrimental advice and conditions still lurk behind any help that poverty stricken countries may recieve. This report, completed by SOLIDAR, Eurodad and the Global Network follows a lack of any substantive changes made at the Pittsburgh G20 leaders meeting, opting only to alter its governence structure but not its aims.

Rebranding hides little change for IMF lending

08.10.2009 After a review of its aid facilities for poorer countries the IMF has rebranded some of it operations and while some new help will be delivered as a result, the standard problem of attaching damaging conditions has not been addressed. There is concern that the rebranding seems little more than a changing of some names for its operations with little useful reforms being made. Not mentioned are special drawing rights (SDRs) to lower-income countries that could be of real help, even though changes on this subject were wanted by countries such as the United Kingdom and France.

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Victory as World Bank suspends lending to palm oil companies

10.09.2009 The World Bank has agreed to suspend International Finance Corporation (IFC) funding of the oil palm sector pending the development of safeguards to ensure that lending doesn't cause social or environmental harm, according to a letter by World Bank President Robert Zoellick to NGOs.

Bangladesh Civil Society mobilises against external control of climate fund

07.09.2009 On the 1st of September Bangladeshi civil society mobilised to form a human wall in front of the National Press Club, Dhaka to protest against the World Bank's control of their climate change adaptation fund. The fund has been given to Bangladesh to mitigate the terrible effects of climate change in the country but has not been given to the sovereign government to administer.

'Ecological debt' of rich nations is growing

01.09.2009 If the "ecological debts" of industrialised nations are factored into the world's financial accounting, the poorer nations of the global South are creditors, not debtors, a panel of economists and theologians has told a World Council of Churches hearing in Geneva.

Congo Gets $551 Million After Pressure Put on IMF

17.12.09 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently approved a three-year, $551.45 million Special Drawing Rrights arrangement for the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This was practiced under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) while additionally another $72.68 million will temporarily be used to reduce Congo’s debt service payments back to the IMF. The IMF stated it believed that the DRC had made important progress in recent years, particularly its move to a democratically eleceted government.