End the Global Debt Trap: Freedom from Debt Now, says AHF

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As part of the global Freedom from Debt campaign launch, nearly 50 AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) country teams and partners will commence multiple in-person and virtual advocacy actions that call for urgent reforms to a global debt system that prevents developing countries from investing in healthcare, education, and other basic human needs.

Debt injustice demands a global system that prioritizes people over profit and ensures countries can meet the basic needs of their populations. The Freedom from Debt campaign calls on global leaders to:

• Implement the Borrowers’ Forum: Establish a Borrowers’ Forum (as proposed by the Seville Financing for Development summit and the G20 South Africa) to unify the Global South’s voice and increase its negotiating power.
• Mandatory Debt Service Pauses: Ensure automatic, interest-free debt pauses in all lending agreements when countries face public health or climate crises.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) Solidarity Levy: Call for a 1% global AI Solidarity Levy on leading AI firms’ capital investments and revenues to fund debt relief and provide essential public goods for the Global South.

The developing world’s sovereign debt crisis is driven by unjust global financial rules, colonial-era economic structures, and the dominance of multilateral institutions (e.g., World Bank, International Monetary Fund) and private creditors. Today, 3.4 billion people live in countries that are forced to spend more on debt servicing than on health or education, paying interest rates two to ten times higher than wealthier countries, which diverts resources meant for health systems, education, and climate resilience from poorer to richer countries.

“Far too many developing countries are being held back by an unfair, oppressive global debt system that undermines their ability to invest in their people and their future,” said AHF Oluwakemi Gbadamosi, Deputy Executive Director of the AHF Global Public Health Institute and Director of the AHF Public Health Institute for Africa. “AHF’s Freedom from Debt campaign calls for bold action to reform this broken system and ensure all nations have the opportunity to advance health, prosperity, and human dignity.”

The sovereign debt imbalance is reinforced by unequal financial markets and governance structures that leave developing nations with limited negotiating power. Countries are routinely forced to prioritize debt payments over lifesaving investments—even during public health emergencies and climate disasters. For every dollar received in aid, trillions exit through debt payments, high interest rates, natural-resource-linked tax loopholes, and other financial outflows that deepen inequality and undermine long-term development.

Through the Freedom from Debt campaign, AHF urges world leaders to help build a more sustainable future for all. Follow the campaign at FFDcampaign.org.

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the world’s largest HIV/AIDS healthcare organization, provides cutting-edge medicine and advocacy to more than 3 million individuals across 50 countries, including the U.S. and in Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region, and Eastern Europe. In January 2025, AHF received the MLK, Jr. Social Justice Award, The King Center’s highest recognition for an organization leading work in the social justice arena. To learn more about AHF, visit us online at AIDShealth.org, find us on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok.

The AHF Global Public Health Institute develops and advocates for evidence-based policy change to create a more equitable and effective global health architecture. With a focus on infectious diseases and health systems, our work addresses critical gaps in global health security, equity, governance, law, and finance. The AHF Global Public Health Institute is part of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. Visit our website for more information: ahfinstitute.org