Samoa Prime Minister and current Chairman of the Pacific Islands Forum, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, says it is embarassing that Pacific countries want to request to have outstanding loans written off.
Tongan Prime Minister Akilisi Pohiva had made the suggestion in an interview with Samoa Observer at the recent Forum Foreign Ministers meeting in Apia.
Tuilaepa told Samoa media that this idea is not new but it has consequences that will impact on future low interest loans from bigger countries.
He said this issue has always been among topics discussed at forums like the Commonwealth Heads of Government and the United Nations.
“And the problem with raising this issue continuously is the bigger countries become reluctant to give loans with low interests because this is what will happen, a loan is granted on a low interest rate yet in five years’ time a request is made to write it off. That is embarrassing.”
Tuilaepa also said asking to write off loans paints a bad picture of a country.
“You can’t sign off on a loan for development and then ask to forgive the loans,” he said.
