FfD4 and debt from a feminist perspective: the job is not yet done!

Polina Girshova, Eurodad

The FfD4 Conference in Sevilla could have been a once-in-a-decade opportunity to reform the global debt architecture towards a gender just debt system. Sadly, the outcome fell far short of expectations.

FfD4 happened against the backdrop of an ongoing debt crisis. Currently, more than 3.3 billion people live in countries that spend more on interest payments than on education and health. Women and girls are the ones who carry the heaviest burden of this crisis. Where governments can no longer invest in public services, the burden of unpaid and underpaid care work carried out in communities and households disproportionately falls on their shoulders. The current debt architecture prioritizes creditors’ interests over people’s lives and rights, particularly those of women and girls. Debt restructurings, coupled with IMF programs, prioritize payment of creditors, without even considering the impacts of those payments on women’s rights. Lending and borrowing policies, together with a lack of debt transparency, also ignore the gender justice implications of reckless debt management, both in creditor and borrowing countries.

The proposal that borrowing countries and civil society put on the table for FfD4 was for an intergovernmental process to agree on a UN Framework Convention on Sovereign Debt – a new rules-based framework to make sure debt works for people and that a gender just debt architecture is possible.

Caption for the photo: “27 June, Sevilla, Feminist Forum, Plenary #2 Building a feminist world: Learnings from cross-regional, intergenerational and intersectional approaches. Photo by Polina Girshova”

What happened with debt at FfD4?

The outcome document – the “Compromiso de Sevilla” – was agreed prior to the start of the official conference, raising questions about the symbolic nature of the event given the absence of on-site negotiations. The urgent call for a UN Framework Convention on Sovereign Debt was derailed by creditor countries, specifically the EU, the UK, Switzerland, Japan, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, South Korea and Saudi Arabia. The text was watered down to include much weaker language, giving the intergovernmental process to the lesser role to “make recommendations”. What also remained is a vague promise of engagement with creditors, like the Paris Club, as well as a Working Group, co-convened by the UN Secretary-General, the IMF, and the World Bank, to promote voluntary principles on sovereign borrowing and lending.

This fell far below the ambition that civil society and many Global South governments had been calling for.

Glimmers of possibility within the text

Despite the clear failings of the Compromiso de Sevilla on debt architecture reform, the outcome document does contain some opportunities. The most promising is the stated support for a borrowers’ platform with a Secretariat under a UN agency (most probably UNCTAD). The proposal for a “borrowers club,” for stronger coordination amongst borrowing countries, sharing information and experiences on debt restructurings and other debt-related policies, has been on the table for quite some time. The international financial architecture has long been dominated by creditors who coordinate through the Paris Club and the G20, so increased coordination among borrowers should strengthen borrower countries’ voices in the global debt architecture, particularly if backed by an international commitment like the Compromiso de Sevilla. The challenge now is for it to be fully funded and operationalized.

The agreement on curbing corrupt borrowing and lending, including by utilizing the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) to “explore options to make such contracts unenforceable,” is also positive news coming out of Sevilla. Finally, the agreement on consolidating existing debt databases in a comprehensive debt registry could also be positive. Though unfortunately, instead of an independent, open and binding debt registry, the Compromiso urges this consolidation of existing debt databases to be led by the World Bank, while “respecting privacy and data protection.”

Ultimately, the final debt chapter suffers from an over-reliance on the IFIs – the very institutions perpetuating harmful policies of privatization, public sector cuts, and regressive taxation that further exacerbate gender inequalities.The calls for debt relief were also blocked by creditor countries, at a time when the Global South is grappling with the worst debt crisis in history.

Civil society and shrinking space

One thing that came as a shock to many in Sevilla was the chaotic repressive measures on-site against civil society’s full participation in the FfD4 conference: no access to key policy makers, confiscation of materials containing political slogans – no stickers, T-shirts, or fans containing any political slogans, no matter how mild, were allowed on the premises of the venue. Civil society had to fight for the right to gather and protest.

Thanks to the efforts of CSO FfD Mechanism, we managed to organize a protest inside – for the first time in the history of FfD conferences.

Caption: Protest inside the FfD4 venue on 3rd July

The power of civil society.

The best thing to come out of FfD4 was the alliance-building which was done by civil society across the globe (1000 in total compared to 6000 private sector participants). Together, we offered our alternative vision for a fairer future and will continue our fight for global economic, gender and climate justice. The outcome was obviously not what we had hoped for. Still, grassroots movements, feminist groups and global coalitions came together to call for needed reforms before, during and beyond FfD4 – during the 27-28th June Feminist Forum, the 28-29th June Civil Society Forum, as well as 29th June’s powerful march through the streets of Sevilla.

Caption: FfD4 Protest on the 29th June in Sevilla

Feminist calls on debt were echoed across different spaces, especially during the off-site Debt4Climate Hub called the “Decolonial Territory” (you can watch all the recordings here) and the art exhibition “On Debt Row” – both of these events called out the colonial debt system, spoke out against growing militarization and demanded reparations for the Global South. They highlighted the disproportionate suffering of women and girls under the current international economic regime of dispossession in the Global South and accumulation in the Global North. Being together in Sevilla outside of the official spaces of FfD4 felt like a breath of fresh air for many of us. It was a much-needed occasion to connect and strengthen our ties between debt, climate and feminist movements.

In Sevilla civil society set a precedent – we are not going to be side-lined, we are going to keep fighting against the injustices and continue to uplift the voices of the people. We were more visible than ever before with our demands for space and for transformation. Our message: The job is not yet done!