Global: NGOs call for IMF gold profits to cancel debts of poorest countries

Nearly 60 international civil society organisations urged the executive board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Monday (4 April) to earmark some 2.8 billion dollars in profits from the agency’s gold sales for cancelling the debts of the world’s poorest nations. In a joint statement, the groups, which included ActionAid International, Oxfam International, the International Trade Union Confederation, and the global Jubilee networks, said the profits should be used to help poor indebted countries weather external shocks, including the 2008-2009 financial crisis and, more recently, the sharp rise in global food and fuel prices.