Innovative financing instruments in Latin America and the Caribbean

Abstract

In the aftermath of the global financial crisis (2008–2009), the external financing needs of Latin America and the Caribbean increased significantly, reflecting a process of external debt accumulation in all developing regions, exacerbated by the impacts of COVID-19. The region is now the most indebted in the developing world, with a debt profile that makes it highly vulnerable to changes in international lending conditions and to perceptions of risk. This has placed a major constraint on government responses to the COVID-19 emergency and undermines their capacity to build forward better. This document considers two proposals to address these challenges: (i) expand and redistribute liquidity from developed to developing countries through innovative uses of SDRs; and (ii) expand the set of innovative instruments to increase debt repayment capacity and avoid over-indebtedness.