External debt sustainability and development: Lessons learned from debt crises and ongoing work on sovereign debt restructuring and debt resolution mechanisms

Pursuant to General Assembly resolution 67/198, the Economic and Social Council held a one-day meeting on “External debt sustainability and development: Lessons learned from debt crises and ongoing work on sovereign debt restructuring and debt resolution mechanisms”. Following a short opening plenary featuring remarks by the President of ECOSOC, Secretary-General of UNCTAD and the Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development of DESA, senior panellists from the World Bank and academia discussed lessons learned from the history of debt crises. Subsequently, UNCTAD and DESA provided briefings on the ongoing work on sovereign debt restructuring and debt resolution mechanisms, followed by an interactive discussion.

The afternoon session featured a keynote address by Prof. Joseph Stiglitz, entitled “Gaps in legal and institutional structures for debt restructuring”. It was followed by a panel discussion on the “Architecture for debt restructuring” and an interactive discussion.

At the closing of the meeting, the President of ECOSOC made concluding remarks highlighting key points and common messages.

• Outcome
  • Summary by the Secretariat
• Background Information on Organizational Matters
  • Journal Announcement 1
  • Journal Announcement 2
  • Programme
  • Letter from the President of ECOSOC to Member States
  • List of Participants 
• Background Information on Substantive Matters 
  • Concept Note
  • Report of the Secretary-General on “External debt sustainability and development” (A/67/174)
  • Report of the Secretary-General on "Follow-up to and implementation of the Monterrey Consensus and Doha Declaration on Financing for Development" (A/67/339)
  • Report of the Secretary-General on "International financial system and development" 
  • Expert Group Meeting on Sovereign Debt Restructuring, Informal summary
  • Report of Experts’ Group Meeting on Sovereign Debt Restructuring
  • Report of the Panel on Facilitating International Adjustment through Timely Debt Resolution
  • IMF Working Paper WP12/203: Sovereign Debt Restructurings 1950–2010: Literature Survey, Data, and Stylized Facts
• ECOSOC Resolutions
  • ECOSOC resolution on 2012/31"Follow-up to the International Conference on Financing and Development"
  • ECOSOC resolution 2012/38 "Follow-up to the International Conference on Financing and Development"
  • ECOSOC resolution 2011/39 on "Follow-up to the Outcome of the Conference on the World Financial and Economic Crisis and Its Impact on Development: consideration of the possible establishment of an ad hoc panel of experts"
• General Assembly Resolutions
  • GA resolution 67/199 on "Follow-up to the International Conference on Financing for Development"
  • GA resolution 67/198 on "External debt sustainability and development"
  • GA resolution 67/197 on "International financial system and development"
• Statements 
  • Belize
  • G77