AIDS response caught in a debt trap

Shobha Shukla (CNS)
When countries are unable to repay debts, domestic financing for health, education or social protection gets slashed which disproportionately affects the already impoverished and marginalised communities in the Global South. Richer nations and financial institutions of the Global North have relentlessly imposed neoliberal policies that force Global South countries to prioritise debt repayment over human rights (or risk debt default) through a mix of regressive anti-people taxation, privatisation of public services, deregulation and cuts on public spending that undermine essential services guaranteed under international and national laws.
“African countries like Angola, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zambia, are paying the interest on their debts which exceeds 50% of government revenues. Half of the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa are either in debt distress or at high risk of it, as they are spending on an average, three times more to repay the interest on their debts than they do on health,” said UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima. "Sierra Leone spends 15 times more on servicing its public debt than on the health of its people."
It is critical to ensure that debt restructuring happens quickly and must have human rights and people’s wellbeing in the centre.
Countries need to have enough money to put in health and development responses for the people.
Debt trap diplomacy has caused countries choke on debt
Archbishop Dr Thabo Makgoba of South Africa called for dropping the debt. “Debt is choking the countries of the Global South and denying us what we need for health and education. Please let us breathe.”
This is why UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres calls out for a restructuring of debt to free the countries for investing in the health of their people.
Debt trap is not new, but its impact has become more lethal for those who are likely to be left behind. “Loan interest rates suddenly rose by three-four times when the war in Ukraine broke out. Countries-in-debt are nowhere (geographically) close to where the war is being fought and yet reeling under debt which has grown manifold. When the low-and middle-income countries go to the market to borrow, they do not borrow at the same rate as a richer nation would. A poor country has to borrow at four times higher rate than a country like Germany would from the same market. There are inequalities even in the financial architecture,” explained Winnie Byanyima.
This is the reason why UN head Antonio also called upon reforming the whole financial architecture to level the ground for developing countries. US$ 500 billion spent on war in Ukraine but AIDS response has US$ 9.5 billion funding gap
One of the health financings that has taken a major blow due to debt trap, skewed financial architecture and spending priorities, is of the global HIV response. US$ 9.5 billion is the funding gap globally – this money is holding back the HIV response as per the plans for delivering on 2025 targets and goals. (To be contd)