The Harare Declaration 2021

The Harare Declaration 2021, adopted during the inaugural African Conference on Debt and Development (AfCoDD), argues that the current global financial architecture is broken and fails African citizens. It highlights how the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated debt vulnerabilities, potentially pushing 39 million Africans into extreme poverty in 2021 and burdening future generations. The document criticizes the IMF's debt sustainability frameworks and private credit rating agencies for prioritizing creditor interests over social and environmental justice. It identifies systemic issues such as illicit financial flows, aggressive corporate tax planning, and the use of Resource Backed Loans as drivers of unsustainable debt. To address these, the Declaration advocates for the reform of global debt architecture, the creation of an African Accountability Mechanism, and the establishment of regional institutions including an African Monetary Fund, an African Development Bank, and an African Investment Bank. It further urges African governments to consider debt cancellation and collective default to break the cycle of dependency on the global north.

• The Covid-19 pandemic is projected to push approximately 39 million Africans into extreme poverty in 2021 and create a debt burden that restricts future financing for infrastructure, potentially hindering the structural transformation driven by Africa's youth.
• The global financial architecture is described as 'broken', characterized by a lack of reform in credit market behavior, credit rating agencies, and restructuring mechanisms since the HIPC and MDRI processes.
• Current debt sustainability frameworks used by the IMF and private credit rating agencies are criticized for ignoring social and environmental tradeoffs, focusing solely on a country's ability to repay creditors.
• Domestic resource mobilisation (DRM) in Africa is undermined by an architecture that enables profit shifting, illicit financial flows, and aggressive corporate tax planning, leading to a cycle of revenue shortfalls and debt accumulation.
• International public finance is viewed as being rooted in colonial and neo-colonial relationships, evolving into 'extractive development finance' through mechanisms like Resource Backed Loans that use natural resources as collateral.
• The Declaration proposes the creation of an African Accountability Mechanism and the establishment of new regional financial institutions—specifically an African Monetary Fund, an African Development Bank, and an African Investment Bank—to increase financial independence.
• The document urges African governments to adopt a common position on sovereign debt that includes the serious consideration of debt cancellation and, if necessary, collective default.

APA

African Forum and Network on Debt and Development (2021). The Harare Declaration 2021. https://afrodad.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/The-Harare-Declaration-2021.docx-5.pdf

Chicago

African Forum and Network on Debt and Development. The Harare Declaration 2021. 2021. https://afrodad.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/The-Harare-Declaration-2021.docx-5.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=African Forum and Network on Debt and Development |title=The Harare Declaration 2021 |date=27 August 2021 |url=https://afrodad.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/The-Harare-Declaration-2021.docx-5.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{africanforumandnetworkondebtanddevelopment2021harare, author = {{African Forum and Network on Debt and Development}}, title = {{The Harare Declaration 2021}}, publisher = {African Forum and Network on Debt and Development}, year = {2021}, month = aug, url = {https://afrodad.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/The-Harare-Declaration-2021.docx-5.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }