Addressing the challenges of 21st century sovereign debt crises.
The mission of the Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery (DRGR) Project is to utilize rigorous, policy-oriented research to advance innovative solutions to address the challenges of 21st century sovereign debt crises.
Taking a holistic approach, the DRGR Project engages with policymakers, thought leaders and civil society to further ambitious, evidence-based policy dialogue for sustainable development around the world. The DRGR Project has been designed since its inception with input from stakeholders in the Global South, and to advance its policy recommendations through a development-centered lens.
The DRGR Project is a collaboration between the Boston University Global Development Policy Center, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung and the Centre for Sustainable Finance at SOAS, University of London. Founded in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the DRGR Project focuses on the linkages between sovereign debt distress and climate change, advancing pioneering proposals to unlock finance for sustainable development and to achieve shared climate and development goals.
Latest research
Defaulting on Development and Climate – Debt Sustainability and the Race for the 2030 Agenda and Paris Agreement
April 2024
Time is running out to achieve the goals set out in the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement. Not meeting these goals will have tragic impacts on the lives of present and future generations; yet, emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) are facing conditions that inhibit their ability to mobilize investment, including historic levels of external debt, higher interest rates and low growth prospects to 2030. The report “Defaulting on Development and Climate – Debt Sustainability and the Race for the 2030 Agenda and Paris Agreement” performs an enhanced global external debt sustainability analysis (DSA) to estimate the extent to which EMDEs can mobilize the recommended levels of external financing without jeopardizing debt sustainability.
Debt Relief by Multilateral Lenders –
Why, How and How Much?
September 2023
As the sovereign debt crisis in the Global South continues to unfold, the lack of involvement of multilateral development banks (MDBs) in debt relief efforts has become a contentious issue among major creditors. Although the Group of 20 (G20) has explicitly called for MDBs to develop options to share the burden of debt relief efforts, MDBs have not presented any concrete and systemic plan thus far on how to contribute to debt relief efforts to countries applying for the G20 Common Framework. The report “Debt Relief by Multilateral Lenders – Why, How and How Much?” aims to contribute to the ongoing debate over debt relief negotiations and MDBs in three main areas.
Latest Commentary
- Preventing a Default on Development and Climate: How Debt Relief Can Support Development Efforts for over 1 Billion People How can emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) mobilize the necessary financing to achieve the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement without compromising their debt sustainability or indeed, solvency? A new report by the DRGR Project performs an enhanced global external debt sustainability analysis (DSA) to estimate the extent to which EMDEs can mobilize the recommended…
- Bogolo Kenewendo and Patrick Njoroge Join the DRGR Project as Co-ChairsThe Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery (DRGR) Project is pleased to announce the appointment of Bogolo Kenewendo and Dr. Patrick Njoroge as its newest Co-Chairs.
- Chart of the Week: Why Multilateral Development Banks Need to Participate in Debt ReliefThe lack of meaningful engagement from all creditor classes has undermined the effectiveness of the Group of 20’s Common Framework in providing significant debt relief. Our “Chart of the Week” shows why the role of multilateral development banks in particular deserves special attention.