Addis Ababa — The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) is co-hosting with the Republic of Senegal an Expert Group Meeting on "Solving Africa's External Debt Problem to Finance Development" from 17 to 19 November in Dakar, Senegal.

Since the 1999 G8 Summit in Cologne, at which the Jubilee 2000 Campaign won a commitment from rich nations to cancel $100 billion of debt for 42 of the world's poorest nations, only eight African countries have reached their completion points under the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. In the meantime, the economic assumptions on which debt relief was based have considerably worsened and many countries, including those few that received debt relief under the HIPC initiative, are grappling with unsustainable debt. With this in mind, African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, at their 2003 annual conference, called for a new initiative to define the policies and instruments that can constitute the next step in the international community's efforts to reduce Africa's debt burden.

The Expert Group Meeting in Dakar will discuss Africa's debt problem and debt relief in the broader context of financing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The experts will consider financing mechanisms that recognize the diversity of Africa and offer different forms of assistance -- including debt relief, grants, and loans -- tailored for different groups of countries, including HIPC countries, those who are not eligible for HIPC debt relief and those who are undertaking post conflict development policies. In particular, the experts will focus on:

· The place of debt relief in the development financing requirements of Africa for achieving the MDGs;

· The shortcomings in current debt sustainability analysis;

· The impact of exogenous shocks on Africa's debt sustainability and measures to address these impact; and

· The legal aspects of external debt management.

His Excellency Abdoulaye Wade, President of the Republic of Senegal, His Excellency Alpha Omar Konaré, President of the African Union Commission, and K.Y. Amoako, Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Africa and Under-Secretary General of the United Nations will set the stage for the discussions with opening statements. Experts from African finance ministries and central banks, the African Development Bank, the Banque centrale des États de l'Afrique de l'Ouest (BCEAO), Regional Economic Communities, the African Union, NEPAD, the media and universities are expected to participate. Key actors, such as the Paris Club, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the World Institute for Development, and the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD), will also be represented.

The meeting outcome will form the basis for a common African position on Africa's external debt, which will be presented to African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development at their next meeting in 2004.