GENEVA, Oct 22 (KUNA) -- UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres launched on Wednesday a new forum aiming to deal with debt crises in a number of the world's developing economies, describing the initiative as an effort to "bring to life" reforms to address these crises. The Sevilla Forum builds on the Sevilla Commitment and Platform for Action, both of which were announced in June at the Fourth International Financing for Development Conference, with the goal of preventing debt crises from "happening in the first place," he said during the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTD 16) in Geneva.
Addressing the gathering, Spain's Minister of Economy Carlos Cuerpo said that the forum could serve as a "vital bridge between borrowers and creditors," in addition to a hub for candid discussions on initiatives to help overcome the mounting debt challenge, he added.
According to UN statistics, developing countries spend USD 1.4 trillion on annual debt service, while 61 of these countries spent 10 percent or more of their government revenues on interest payments last year, citing 3.4 billion people living in countries that spend more on servicing debt than on health or education, it showed.
The UN has described the Sevilla Forum on Debt as an effort that will be instrumental in helping deliver the "financial justice" that people and countries need and deserve. (end) amk.nam