Treasury Secretary Announces Support for Global Reserve Access, Debt Relief and Tackling Climate Change

international | politics / elections | press release Thursday February 25, 2021 16:57 by Zachary Conti - Jubilee USA

In a letter to the G20, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressed support for the G20 to determine a process for how global reserve funds (Special Drawing Rights) could be deployed to help low-income countries.

In a letter to the G20, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressed support for the G20 to determine a process for how global reserve funds (Special Drawing Rights) could be deployed to help low-income countries.

"Yellen's letter is incredibly positive news and signals support for the creation of Special Drawing Rights or reserve funds to support developing countries," noted Jubilee USA Executive Director Eric LeCompte. LeCompte has pressed the G20 on Special Drawing Rights for the last year. "Secretary Yellen is right that the G20 debt relief process must be implemented in an effective way to deal with the debt burdens of numerous developing countries."

The letter also highlighted the need to implement a debt relief process or the G20 "Common Framework for Debt Treatments beyond the Debt Service Suspension Initiative." Yellen also encouraged the need for countries to tackle climate change.

"The letter from Yellen acknowledges that some of the most consequential decisions regarding climate change will be a part of financial decisions made by the G20," stated LeCompte, a United Nations finance expert. "These climate decisions must be made transparently and out in the open."

The letter comes a day before Yellen is set to meet with other G20 finance ministers. Earlier in the week the US Conference of Catholic Bishops and Jubilee USA Network sent a detailed letter to Yellen and President Biden expressing support for debt relief, financial system changes to prevent future crises and a $3 trillion allocation of the Special Drawing Rights. On Wednesday more than 200 groups wrote the G20 expressing support for Special Drawing Rights.