Paris Club to reduce debt

The Paris Club creditor countries recommended on Monday a reduction of Mauritania's stock of debt estimated at US $320 million as at 1 July, to $16 million, a statement from the Club said. Mauritania, the club said, had a strong commitment to economic and structural reforms and to the burden of its external indebtedness. On 18 June, it reached the completion point under the World Bank enhanced Debt Initiative for the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC). The additional Paris Club relief would be granted on a bilateral basis. According to the statement, Mauritania was committed to devote the resources freed by the present treatment of the debt to priority areas identified in the country's poverty reduction strategy paper and to seek comparable treatment from all its creditors, including other countries as well as commercial creditors. Mauritania became the sixth country to complete the Paris Club process of debt reduction under the Enhanced HIPC Initiative, after Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, Uganda and Tanzania. The full statement is posted at: http://www.clubdeparis.org/en/news/page_detail_news.php?FICHIER=com10262241630