HAMBURG, Germany (Reuters) – Many of the world’s poorest countries are having to cut other investment in order to service debts, United Nations Development Programme administrator Achim Steiner said on Monday.
Speaking at an event in the German city of Hamburg, Steiner added that the financial crunch meant that countries worldwide were struggling to meet their sustainable development goals.
“For many, least developed countries, they have literally been priced out of the financial markets. They cannot borrow any more money,” Steiner told the Hamburg Sustainability Conference, adding that they must draw down other spending to avoid debt default. “It’s a very extreme situation.”
(Reporting by Libby George; Editing by Duncan Miriri and Gareth Jones)
