Standing, Andre (2022) Debt-for-nature swaps and the oceans: The belize blue bond. UNSPECIFIED, Kenya.
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TNC’s debt-for-ocean swap in Belize had an impact on a large part of the country’s foreign debt, while also advancing several important policies on the management of the country’s blue economy. It is the first example of a wider global initiative, with similar debt swaps being negotiated in many other developing coastal and small island states. The international response has been overwhelmingly positive, and TNC’s debt swaps are being used as the inspiration for other proposals on how developing countries currently drowning in debt can be traded into funds for responding to the climate crisis. Organisations working with small-scale fisheries need to engage more in debates about the desirability of debt-for-ocean swaps. Unfortunately, the main international organisations influencing policy debates on the blue economy are so enthusiastic about these “innovative” financial instruments that they are not providing a platform for open exchanges, but simply aiding the marketing of these deals. In taking forward these debates, critics need to treat the glossy presentations with upmost caution. Debt swaps are routinely presented in misleading ways that exaggerate the financial benefits for the debtor country, while overlooking the financial benefits to the creditors. A key question is whether debt swaps can be reformed to be more beneficial for small-scale fisheries, or whether they should be opposed outright? Several policy recommendations could be advanced to improve these deals, such as strengthening democratic accountability and inclusion, while also reducing the transfer of power to organisations such as TNC. Campaigns might force bondholders to be more generous in agreeing to discounts? Yet these improvements will be difficult to achieve, partly because the success of the debt swaps requires confidentiality in their negotiation and because gaining political leverage in developing countries would seem to be one of the main reasons why organisations such as TNC engage in these deals. Expecting bondholders to be more charitable is naïve since they exist to maximise profits. Real transfers of wealth are unlikely to occur if left to voluntary commitments of the private financial industry.
| Item Type: | Documents |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | Blue Economy, Belize, Oceans, TNC, CFFA, Conservation, Biodiversity, Conservation, Marine Ecosystem |
| Subjects: | Biodiversity |
| Depositing User: | Bharti Vijaya |
| Date Deposited: | 31 Jan 2023 09:09 |
| Last Modified: | 31 Jan 2023 09:09 |
| URI: | http://icsfarchives.net/id/eprint/17382 |
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