BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, SEPTEMBER 2ND 2014 (CUOPM) – The experience of St. Kitts and Nevis in adopting an effective debt reduction strategy received international attention at the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) now underway in Apia, Samoa.
At a side event held in the margins of the Conference, the Federation’s Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, the Right Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas received high commendation from the Deputy Managing Director of the Washington-based International Monetary Fund (IMF), Mr. Min Zhu, for successfully negotiating and implementing its debt restructuring programme with international financial institutions, most notably the IMF, and for reducing its debt to GDP ratio from over 180 per cent to 95 per cent over a four year period.
One of the challenges faced by Small Island Developing States (SIDS) is their heavy debt burden which affects their ability to achieve sustainable development.
Mr. Zhu informed the gathering that St. Kitts and Nevis has demonstrated to the international community the value of engaging all partners in a manner that would take into account the peculiar circumstances of the beneficiary country, in this case SIDS.
The Government of St. Kitts and Nevis is optimistic that its level of engagement at the SIDS Conference will yield a number of initiatives that will assist in achieving its sustainable development objectives.