Dossier

Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery

At precisely the moment when substantial investment is needed to meet shared climate and development goals, a debt crisis is emerging in the Global South. However, existing debt relief initiatives are limited, both in the types of creditors brought to the table and the amount of debt relief on offer.

The Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery (DRGR) project, a collaboration between the Boston University Global Development Policy Center, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung and the Centre for Sustainable Finance, SOAS University of London, argues it is time for comprehensive debt reform. Utilizing rigorous research, DRGR seeks to develop systemic approaches to both resolve the debt crisis and advance a just transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy in partnership with policymakers, thought leaders and civil society from around the world.

For more information, please visit our website www.drgr.org

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Article
Video Recordings

Panel discussion: Tackling Sovereign Debt Problems Amid Global Shocks - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Kicking the Can Down the Road or Meeting the Challenge? Tackling Sovereign Debt Problems Amid Global Shocks

Recording from April 23. 2025

Investing for the Future - How Debt Relief Can Help Make Space for Climate and Development Goals - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Investing for the Future - How Debt Relief Can Help Make Space for Climate and Development Goals

Recording from May 14, 2024

 

Videos

Sovereign debt Relief for climate vulnerable countries (#COP29 #G20) - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Sovereign debt Relief for climate vulnerable countries (#COP29 #G20)

Debt Relief for Climate Vulnerable Countries explained [2023] - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Debt Relief for Climate Vulnerable Countries explained [2023]

Main Reports

Cover: Skyline of Nairobi at sunset, with a tall, modern building in the foreground. Text on the subject of debt crisis and green growth.

Giving Voice to The Silent Debt Crisis

Policy Brief
This policy brief details the challenging debt dynamics facing African nations and outlines several solutions that would improve their fiscal capacity to address the climate emergency and embark on a sustainable growth pathway.
pdf
Borneo, Malaysia - Rice field

Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery

Report
The report analyzes new data on the level and composition of sovereign debt for emerging markets and developing economies and its relationship to climate vulnerability. It estimates the size of debt restructuring and suspension necessary for countries in or at high risk of debt distress to achieve debt sustainability and put them on a path towards meeting their development goals and climate commitments.
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Cover - Another lost Decade or a Decade of Action?

Another Lost Decade or a Decade of Action?

Policy Brief
Climate-related shocks are becoming more frequent and severe. More than ever, countries must invest in climate resilience and just transitions, but for many emerging market and developing economies, high debt burdens put achieving climate and development goals out of reach. A new policy brief explains the proposal advanced by the Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery (DRGR) Project.
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Cover der Studie "Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery"

Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery

Report
This report proposes a Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery Initiative as an ambitious, concerted, and comprehensive debt relief initiative that frees up resources to support recoveries in a sustainable way, boosts economies’ resilience, and fosters a just transition to a low-carbon economy.
Cover: Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery

Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery

Report
The Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery initiative of the Heinrich Böll Foundation, the Centre for Sustainable Finance at SOAS University London and the Boston University Global Development Policy Center presents its current refined proposal for concerted and comprehensive debt relief at the global level to promote a just transition to a low-carbon economy.

Vidoes: Presentation of Main Reports

Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Key Messages - Launch Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery Report - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Recording - Launch of the Report Debt Relief for a Green and Inclusive Recovery - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Background Papers

Debt Relief by Private Creditors: Lessons from the Brady Plan

Debt Relief for Green and Inclusive Recovery Project

This paper reviews the main features of and experiences with the Brady Plan, which in 1989 laid the foundation for the restructuring of the sovereign debt of mainly Latin American countries. It argues that the combination of credit enhancement for restructured debt, moral suasion, and tax as well as regulatory relief to encourage private creditors to participate in debt restructurings may provide a template for addressing today's sovereign debt problems.
pdf
Compensating Indebted Countries for Keeping Fossil Fuels in the Ground

Compensating Indebted Countries for Keeping Fossil Fuels in the Ground

Fossil fuel development, in particular oil and gas, promised vast riches in the past. Today it is exposing fossil fuel producers and their creditors to a massive stranded asset risk. Technological disruption with the rapid cost-reduction of renewable energy and storage technologies, in conjunction with the inevitability of increased climate action, are at the root of unprecedented uncertainties over the future of the sector. 
pdf
Debt for Climate Opportunities in South Africa

Debt for Climate Opportunities in South Africa

South Africa’s economy, which was already in a precarious state before Covid-2019, has been tipped into full blown crisis by the pandemic. Gross national government debt  is expected to be upwards of 86% within two years. Eskom, which is the country’s state-owned monopolistic and vertically integrated electricity utility, is a key driver of this escalating debt profile and lies at the heart of the economy’s structural challenges. 
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