General News
Commonwealth Debt Crisis: AHF Calls for UK Leadership and Reform
From Dooshima Terkura, Makurdi
Ahead of the United Kingdom’s G20 Presidency in 2027 and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) scheduled to hold in Antigua and Barbuda this November, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) has called on the UK to urgently demonstrate concrete leadership, rather than rhetoric, in tackling the sovereign debt crisis.
The call comes as CHOGM prepares to convene under the theme, “Accelerating Partnerships and Investment for a Prosperous Commonwealth.”
AHF, however, lamented that one in three Commonwealth countries is currently in debt distress, while a majority of global debt contracts are governed by UK law.
The organisation noted that globally, 3.4 billion people live in countries that spend more on debt servicing than on health and education combined.
It added that these countries also face borrowing costs two to ten times higher than those of wealthier nations. Across the Commonwealth, 21 countries reportedly spend at least 14 per cent of government revenue on debt repayments.
According to AHF President, Michael Weinstein, “The global debt crisis is upheld by a financial architecture that is inequitable, extractive, and rooted in colonial legacy.
The UK has a very unique opportunity to demonstrate honest leadership in championing systemic reforms that ensure members of the Commonwealth can achieve genuine prosperity.”
He said the UK must protect borrowing nations in the Global South from private creditors who “weaponize its legal system to force repayments,” adding that this should include legislation to curb predatory lending practices and prevent creditors from undermining debt relief efforts.
The call for concrete leadership also follows the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s announcement to slash UK Aid funding by up to 90 per cent to some countries, including Malawi and Mozambique, which are already facing severe fiscal pressures that limit their ability to invest in social protection measures.
In a statement signed and made available to newsmen by AHF Nigeria’s Senior Advocacy and Marketing Manager, Steve Aborisade, AHF Executive Vice President, Dr. Penninah Iutung, said the debt crisis was undermining the prosperity of Commonwealth member states.
“We cannot say we are a Commonwealth of Nations when many member states are trapped in a debt cycle that impoverishes them and destabilizes their economies.
“The debt crisis is no longer a financial issue, but a security and development issue. We demand that it is treated with the same urgency as any pandemic, and the Global South must also unite to sustain the push for debt reform, drawing on the ideals of the forefathers of independence and anti-colonial movements,” she added.
The statement recalled that in June, AHF and its partners launched the Freedom from Debt campaign, which calls on global leaders to accelerate the implementation of the Borrowers’ Forum to unify the voice of the Global South, increase its negotiating power, and mandate automatic, interest-free debt pauses in all lending agreements whenever countries face public health or climate crises.
The campaign also calls for a one per cent global AI Solidarity Levy on leading artificial intelligence firms’ capital investments and revenues to fund debt relief and provide essential public goods for the Global South.
The organisation maintained that now, more than ever, bold action is required to address the unjust global financial system, ensure all nations have the opportunity to achieve progress, prosperity and peace, and urged the UK to lead the charge.