29 January, Washington. TCD IMF Seminar on Integrating Climate Change into the LIC-DSF
The Task Force on Climate, Development and the IMF, hosted by the GDP Center of Boston University, organised a seminar on how to integrate climate change into the IMF/World Bank Low Income Countries’ Debt Sustainability Framework, which is due to be reviewed during 2024-25. Matthew Martin spoke on practical experiences of integrating climate change into the SRDSF for Market Accessing Countries, and implications for the LIC-DSF, as analysed in a forthcoming paper for Friedrich Ebert Stiftung New York and Jubilee USA. He emphasised that while the SRDSF integration has been a major step forward, there are some major problems with it, notably its application to too few countries, underestimation of potential adaptation and mitigation costs. Insufficient emphasis given to debt service crowding out climate spend, and its omission of the potential positive multiplier effects on growth and budget revenue of Just Green Transition spending. If these problems can be fixed it could be replicated in the LIC-DSF. The presentation is available on request from DFI.
