The Government of Zimbabwe has requested South Africa’s support in mobilizing international partners to review its debt under the G20 Common Framework. The aim is to enable the country’s return to international capital markets after more than 25 years of exclusion.
“South Africa was approached by Zimbabwe to consider assisting the country in mobilizing international support for its request for debt treatment under the Common Framework,” South Africa’s National Treasury told Bloomberg.
The G20’s Common Framework was established to facilitate debt relief for distressed countries through a coordinated restructuring process with creditors. Zimbabwe’s participation in this mechanism could pave the way for the normalization of its external financial relations.
Since the late 1990s, when the country began defaulting on its external debt payments, Zimbabwe has lost access to international financial markets. Since then, it has relied on bilateral aid, limited credit, and multilateral institutions.
To reduce this dependency, the Zimbabwean government has, in recent years, intensified diplomatic and economic efforts to resolve the debt crisis and regain investor confidence. South Africa’s involvement, as a regional economic powerhouse, is seen as crucial in this process.
This request for support comes in the context of greater regional cooperation to address shared economic challenges. A positive response from South Africa could help stabilize Zimbabwe and strengthen ties between the two neighboring countries.
Source: DE
