Describe and Explain Debt Relief with an example of a debt relief initiative.

Debt relief is the partial or total remission of debt by the lending body. Debt relief reduces economic disparity by decreasing vulnerability to shocks and promoting development as there is more money, that no longer needs to be repaid as debt, to go to key socio-economic initiatives such as those that improve education, women's rights and health. However it is important to note that re-accumulation of debt is a significant issue and therefore, in the long term the process of lending should be scrutinised and re-evaluated in order to make it more financially responsible and less exploitative. A key example of a debt relief initiative is the World Bank and the IMF's 'Heavily Indebted Poor Countries' (HIPC) initiative in which partial or total relief and reduction was offered to countries that met specific criteria. These criteria included having an unsustainable debt burden and evidence of the previous establishment of IMF/WB programmes.