Former Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun has said that African countries are often in debt distress because they failed to cut social spending. According to Adeosun, “The long periods needed to carry out debt restructuring, such as that in Zambia, have their roots in lack of action before a default takes place. She pointed to a “failure to manage the pre-period,” adding that countries in debt distress are often reluctant to admit it due to the need to cut social spending, especially the democratic one. “The lack of international mechanisms for sovereign debt restructuring hampers the prospects for Africa achieving sustainable public finances or being able to contribute to the clean energy transition. “We have no framework for debt restructuring across sovereigns, and the result is too little debt restructuring, too late.

Source: Punch October 18, 2023 23:46 UTC