September 25, 2005
JS-2949

Statement of Secretary John W. Snow on Cancellation of HIPC debt

I was very pleased to see that the World Bank Development Committee today strongly endorsed the proposal for 100 percent cancellation of HIPC debt. We expect the executive boards of the IMF and World Bank to swiftly give final approval and move on to implementing it.

President Bush set 100 percent debt cancellation as a priority objective of America's comprehensive plan to assist poor countries. As we developed the plan for 100 percent debt cancellation, we knew it would be a long road to reach this goal, but it's gratifying to see our persistence and commitment pay off. We look forward to working with the institutions, donor countries, and, most importantly, the countries that benefit from this plan as we try to attain the ultimate goal of raising living standards of poor people everywhere.