On June 20, 2025 the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences (PASS) and Columbia University’s Initiative for Policy Dialogue (IPD) published a report by a commission of global experts calling for urgent action and systemic reforms to tackle the escalating debt and development crises.
Dear members of the Paris Club Secretariat, Thank you for the invitation to present some of the key findings and conclusions of the Jubilee Report, commissioned by Pope Francis and prepared by a Commission of<a class="moretag" href="https://ipdcolumbia.org/"> Read more…</a>
The conventional perspective that a debt crisis occurs only when a country defaults is deeply flawed. In reality, numerous nations are experiencing economic stagnation due to unsustainable debt burdens, even without formal default. According to UNCTAD, more than three billion people live in countries where debt servicing surpasses spending on essential sectors such as education and healthcare.
Explore Further >> about Tackling the Debt and Development Crises in Jubilee Year 2025
A debt crisis is endangering development around the world, increasing the risk of defaults in the coming years, especially in low and lower-middle income countries. When countries suffer debt crises, prolonged and insufficient debt restructurings delay economic recovery and stunt funding for priorities like healthcare, education, and mitigating impacts of the climate crisis. This dangerous situation calls for urgent attention to the inefficiencies in the sovereign debt restructuring landscape.
The email arrived in early February from the U.S. Embassy in Copenhagen, carrying a blunt message. It informed the organizers of a Danish lecture series — one I was soon scheduled to speak at — that the final portion of American funding would be released only after they signed a statement essentially saying they were in compliance with a U.S. executive order banning diversity, equity and inclusion.
Explore Further >> about My Brush With Trump’s Thought Police
The death of Pope Francis and global aid cuts led by the United States could complicate the work of a group of experts assembled by the Vatican to bring debt relief and a fairer financing system to the world's poor.
Explore Further >> about Pope’s death, US aid cuts complicate Vatican’s debt relief push
03/04/2025
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Working Paper
We study the optimal design of corporate tax policy in a textbook life-cycle model featuring two key deviations: (i) firms are imperfectly competitive and (ii) households save by purchasing equity shares in a stock market.
View the Publication >> about Equity Prices, Market Power, and Optimal Corporate Tax Policy
12/10/2024
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Policy Brief
A group of academic experts, practitioners, finance ministers, policymakers, authorities from international financial institutions, religious leaders, and experts from civil society organizations met at the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences (PASS) in the Vatican City on June 5, 2024, to discuss the current debt situation, especially in the Southern Hemisphere.
View the Publication >> about Addressing the debt and development crises in countries from the South in the year of the Jubilee
12/01/2024
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Working Paper
Capitalism since its inception has been marked by large fluctuations. The resulting episodic unemployment has been very costly. This paper provides an overview of alternative theories
View the Publication >> about Growth and Fluctuations: An Overview
09/12/2024
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Policy Brief
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) levies ‘surcharges’ or extra fees on member countries that either draw “substantial” amounts of IMF credit to mitigate balance of payments constraints, or that maintain their credit exposure with the institution for sufficiently long periods of time.
View the Publication >> about Reforming the IMF Surcharge Rate Policy to Avoid Procyclical Lending
Tackling the Debt and Development Crises in Jubilee Year 2025
July 3, 2025
June 25, 2025
May 2, 2025
Tax Policy, Inequality, and the Future of the American Economy
April 23, 2025
April 22, 2025
April 22, 2025
The Risks of Argentina and the IMF’s Ongoing Negotiations for the Future of Multilateral Financing
April 1, 2025
How New York Can Help End the Global Debt Crisis
March 13, 2025
Jubilee Commission on Addressing the Debt and Development Crises in Countries from the South
February 21, 2025
Journal of Globalization and Development
Journal of Globalization and Development
Volume 14 Issue 2 – Special Issue: Gendered Effects of Globalization and Development
Journal of Globalization and Development
Journal of Globalization and Development
Journal of Globalization and Development
Journal of Globalization and Development
Journal of Globalization and Development
Journal of Globalization and Development
Journal of Globalization and Development
IPD broadens dialogue on critical issues in developmental policy.
Diverse stakeholders with a legitimate interest in policy outcomes often lack access to the process, information, and language necessary to participate effectively. IPD emphasizes diverse participation to enable civic involvement in economic policymaking.