The list of debtors released by the Paris Club- group of bilateral lenders to developing nations on
As much as countries should not enter into debts that they cannot service, the Paris Club list does not reveal the purpose of the loans, who signed for them and under what circumstance. It is no closed secret, for example, that the West is reaping huge profits from DR Congo’s minerals but puts the country’s debt at USD 2.954 Billion. Could it be a ploy to further exploit the country in the name of debt repayment?
Most African government treasuries have never revealed their commercial indebtedness. Transparency and accountability is needed to dismiss allegations that there could have been falsifications in some debt entries and the negotiation deal should be transparent as well.
African governments should endeavor to represent their people’s wishes instead of being driven by donor interests. They ought to prioritize on their own financial agenda other than waiting for donors to direct them. Spending USD 14 billion on debt annually at the expense of essential service provision is a new form of slavery whose effects are no less devastating than war.