THE CLIMATE AND DEBT CRISIS EMERGED FROM THE SAME SYSTEM THAT IS BASED ON THE GLOBAL NORTH'S RELENTLESS EXTRACTION OF HUMAN ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES TO FEED THE DRIVE FOR PROFIT AND GREED.

"The group is calling for creditors to cancel all debts for countries facing crisis – and especially those linked to fossil fuel projects.

“High debt levels are a major barrier to phasing out fossil fuels for many global south countries,” said Tess Woolfenden, a senior policy officer at Debt Justice. “Many countries are trapped exploiting fossil fuels to generate revenue to repay debt while, at the same time, fossil fuel projects often do not generate the revenues expected and can leave countries further indebted than when they started. This toxic trap must end.”"

"Mozambique was plunged into a debt crisis when oil and gas prices fell in 2014-16, Ribeiro said, but the solutions from international lenders to bail out the country have relied on loans being repaid through future gas revenues.

“The debt caused by fossil fuels are being structured to be paid back by fossil fuels, solidifying a vicious cycle of having to move forward and having very severe consequences of not wanting to continue with fossil fuels,” Ribeiro said."

"Most of the $10bn (£7bn) in financial assistance provided to Pakistan after last year’s floods was in the form of loans, while the share of Dominica’s debt of its gross domestic product (GDP) rose from 68% to 78% after Hurricane Maria in 2017."

Mae Buenaventura, from the Asian People’s Movement on Debt and Development, said:

"The climate and debt crises emerged from the same system that is based on the global north’s relentless extraction of human, economic and environmental resources to feed the drive for profit and greed.”

She said debt cancellation was the least that rich countries and lenders could do."

SOURCE:

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/aug/21/rich-countries-trap-poor-nations-into-relying-on-fossil-fuels

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