British economist and renowned debt justice advocate Ann Pettifor has called for urgent rebalancing of the international financial system to promote fairness and equity between creditor nations and debtor countries.
Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the 9th Ghana International Trade and Finance Conference (GITFiC) meeting on the 2nd Global Debt Initiative, Ms Pettifor argued that existing global financial structures overwhelmingly favour creditors, enabling them to extract disproportionate value and resources from heavily indebted economies.
She explained that while domestic legal systems make provision for bankruptcy, allowing businesses to suspend debt repayment in the event of unforeseen crises, no similar mechanisms exist at the international level.
Ms Pettifor used a practical example to illustrate the problem. If a warehouse burns down, you cannot expect the business to repay its debt. But in international finance, no such protections exist. The system needs rebalancing so that the relationship between creditors and debtors is fairer, both in the global economy and within countries.
Ms Pettifor, a co-founder of the Jubilee 2000 Debt Cancellation Campaign, stressed that the current system entrenches creditor dominance, limiting the ability of debtor nations, especially in Africa, to pursue development priorities.
She issued a stark warning about global capital flows, describing money flowing uphill from poor nations to the rich as an inversion of what international financial systems were designed to achieve. Africa transferred about 26 billion dollars in interest payments to richer nations between 2010 and 2023, and is expected to send 20 billion dollars in 2025 alone.
Interest payments on long-term debt in sub-Saharan Africa rose nearly sevenfold to 26 billion dollars between 2010 and 2023, according to the World Bank. The increase came as the region’s foreign borrowing doubled to 864 billion dollars within the period. Mozambique and Senegal grappled with particularly severe debt pressure.
The continent’s worsening debt crisis has left some countries spending more on debt repayments than vital services such as healthcare or education. African countries spent 16.7 percent of government revenue on interest payments alone in 2023, the highest among developing regions and 10.1 percentage points higher than in 2010.
For Egypt, interest payments can reach almost 75 percent of government revenue while Nigeria, Ghana, Malawi and Kenya account for 30 percent. Most countries are servicing their debt on time, but this comes at the expense of essential social spending.
Ms Pettifor urged African governments to adopt a more assertive posture in shaping their economic policies and shift away from overdependence on foreign creditors. Rather than committing the bulk of national revenue to external debt servicing, she said countries should reinvest their own resources into key social sectors.
The government of Ghana should feel free to determine its own policies and use more of its internal income to invest in health, education and welfare, instead of prioritising the interests of foreign creditors. Countries need to move from depending on foreign creditors and foreign finance to using their own resources to build economies at home.
Ms Pettifor also highlighted youth unemployment as one of Africa’s most pressing challenges, criticising the global financial system for channelling vast resources into lending rather than development.
She expressed astonishment at how much money circulates in the international system, yet so little is invested in young people. Governments continue borrowing and end up repaying twice as much, leaving limited resources for job creation.
She recommended that Ghana mobilise more domestic funds supported by the central bank and national savings to expand opportunities for young people and strengthen future economic resilience. The Ghanaian government should channel some of its internal income with the support of the central bank and savings from the people into growing the capacity of young people so that they could be equipped to meet the challenges of the future.
The economist also urged African debtor countries to build collective bargaining power, proposing a formal Borrowers’ Club. She called on Ghana to lead this bloc, describing the country’s debt management reforms as transparent, professional and exemplary.
She praised Ghana’s debt restructuring efforts, citing the 37 percent nominal reduction in Eurobond debt, two billion dollars in bilateral relief, and progress on domestic debt exchange. Ghana is among countries spending more on interest payments than on key social sectors, according to United Nations officials attending the conference.
Ms Pettifor further commended the Government of Ghana, particularly the Ministry of Finance, for producing what she described as an excellent report on the country’s debt restructuring efforts, urging other nations to learn from Ghana’s approach.
The Chief Country Economist at African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr Zerihun Gudeta Alemu, highlighted the continent’s mounting development finance needs amid rising debt vulnerabilities. Debt is not the enemy. The issue is how it is structured, governed, and used, he stressed, calling for reforms anchored on innovation, transparency and sustainability.
He cited ongoing AfDB interventions including strengthening debt management offices through the Public Finance Management Academy (PFMA), expanding risk mitigation instruments, and guarantees that have mobilized over 400 million dollars for development projects.
Two-thirds of low-income countries are already in or near debt distress, affecting 3.4 billion people worldwide. The United Nations reaffirmed its commitment to support African debt and trade reforms through policy guidance and technical support, and strengthening national debt management systems.
The two-day GITFiC event, held from November 27 to 28 in Accra, brought together global economists, African development experts, student leaders and policymakers under the theme Spurring GITFiC’s Global Debt Initiative: Consolidating Member States’ Gains for Synergistic Impacts and Widening the Scope of Sensitization on the African Continent.
The conference also featured the inaugural GITFiC-AfCFTA Tertiary Students Conference, marking a significant expansion of GITFiC’s engagement rooted in The GITFiC Agenda 2031. Speaker of Parliament Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin chaired the conference.
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