Benue Residents Call for Debt Repayment Suspension During Pandemics, Disasters, Demand Fairer Global Lending System
Residents of Adaka Community on the outskirts of Makurdi, Benue State, have called on international financial institutions and global creditors to adopt fairer lending policies by automatically suspending debt repayments for developing countries affected by pandemics, natural disasters and other emergencies.
The appeal was made during a community advocacy programme organised by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Nigeria, where participants argued that the growing debt burden on developing countries continues to undermine investments in healthcare, education, infrastructure and other essential public services.
Community leaders, advocacy groups and officials of AHF Nigeria maintained that many African countries are weighed down by high-interest loans, leaving governments with limited resources to address pressing developmental challenges and improve citizens’ welfare.
Speaking during the event, the President of the Advocacy Club Adaka, Mr. Moses Usuwe, described the current global lending framework as inequitable, noting that African nations often pay significantly higher interest rates on loans than developed economies.
He said the situation has continued to widen development gaps across the continent and called for reforms that would ensure greater fairness in international financing.
Usuwe outlined three major demands by the advocacy group, including the establishment of a Borrowers’ Forum that would enable developing countries to negotiate collectively with international creditors, the allocation of one per cent of global artificial intelligence (AI)-generated revenue to support healthcare, education and infrastructure development in Africa, and the automatic suspension of debt servicing whenever countries are confronted with disasters or public health emergencies.
According to him, governments facing crises such as floods, disease outbreaks, including COVID-19 and Ebola, should be allowed to prioritise emergency response and recovery instead of diverting scarce resources to external debt repayments.
Also speaking, the Public Relations Officer of Advocacy Club Adaka, Mrs. Eunice Idoko, linked Nigeria’s rising debt servicing obligations to the poor state of infrastructure in rural communities.
She cited the persistent water scarcity in Adaka as an example, explaining that many women and children spend several hours each day searching for potable water, a situation that negatively affects productivity and school attendance.
Mrs. Idoko argued that reducing debt servicing obligations through lower interest rates would enable governments to channel more resources into critical infrastructure such as water supply, healthcare and education.
Another community advocate, Mrs. Richesl Uzo, also appealed for debt repayment moratoriums during national emergencies, insisting that governments should not be compelled to continue servicing external debts while responding to humanitarian crises.
Providing further insight into the campaign, AHF Nigeria’s Senior Advocacy and Marketing Manager, Mr. Steve Aborisade, said the initiative was informed by the increasing financial pressures confronting many developing nations due to unfavourable loan conditions.
He noted that while governments borrow to finance development projects, the prevailing lending structure places an excessive burden on African economies through high interest rates and stringent repayment conditions.
Aborisade maintained that a unified Borrowers’ Forum would strengthen the negotiating capacity of developing countries and improve their chances of securing more favourable loan terms.
He further called on governments and leading artificial intelligence companies to dedicate one per cent of AI-generated revenues to debt relief initiatives and investments in public health, education and social protection programmes across developing countries.
Highlighting the urgency of the campaign, he cited global statistics indicating that approximately 3.4 billion people live in countries where governments spend more on debt servicing than on healthcare or education.
According to him, nearly two-thirds of African countries currently allocate more funds to debt interest payments than to healthcare, a trend he described as detrimental to sustainable development.
“Africa is not poor; it is being drained. We are not asking for debt cancellation but for fairer repayment conditions that will allow governments to invest in the well-being of their people,” he said.
In his remarks, the traditional ruler of Mbagbaange Community, Chief Nicholas Angbianshio, commended AHF Nigeria for its continued interventions in communities across the country.
He acknowledged the organisation’s contributions to improving the lives of vulnerable residents and urged it to sustain its humanitarian and advocacy programmes.
Participants at the advocacy programme expressed optimism that reforms in the global lending system would enable developing countries to invest more in healthcare, education, infrastructure and other critical sectors, thereby improving living conditions and accelerating sustainable development.