Making debt relief work: The heavily indebted poor countries initiative
Burdon, Tony / 2001

The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative adopted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank in October 1996, looked like a significant step towards ending the debt crisis that has crippled the economies of the world's poorest countries. It promised transition to a sustainable level of debt repayments, with likely benefits in terms of poverty reduction and investment in economic growth. Has this promise come true? Recent investigations by Oxfam assessed what the debt burden means to poor countries and how HIPC works in practice, with special reference to Tanzania. The reports also asks what factors lie behind its shortcomings in countering debt.