Taking the political economy of borrowing seriously

Alongside the rise of new country and institutional lenders over the past 25 years, with different approaches to transparency and terms of lending, there is increasing discussion about the nature and governance of traditional multi-lateral lending institutions and the role of credit agencies. However, decisions on how, when, and for what purposes debt should be taken on lie with national decision-makers. 

In this fourth and last session of our webinar series on public debt, our expert panelists will be addressing several important questions such as: 

• How can we improve the governance of debt decision-making, and monitoring of its usage?
• Why and under which circumstances do governments accumulate more debt than it would be consistent with the prescriptions of optimal fiscal policy?  
• What political mechanisms make governments depart from optimal and sustainable decisions on public debt?  
• How do political interests constrain borrowing decisions?
• What is the role of international financial institutions, debtor nations, creditors, and other stakeholders?