President of the World Bank Group, David Malpass, has said there is the need to ensure that detailed and timely public disclosure of debt service payments that may be deferred is made.

According to him, this will enable stakeholders—governments as well as the private sector and the public at large—to keep track of the progress being made in the implementation of DSSI while highlighting the growing importance of debt transparency.

“Today we are disclosing more disaggregated data in the DRS than in the past and in the future, we will be seeking support from borrowing countries on a mechanism to disclose even more granular information on debt payments,” he said in an article.

He added: “This, of course, is only a start—and our goal is to increase the breadth and quality of debt data available here and elsewhere. Going forward, borrowing countries and creditors need to achieve sustained progress on five key principles to improve debt transparency and improve investment flows:

“Spell out loan contract terms and payment schedules; Full disclosure of the stock of public and publicly guaranteed debt, SOE liabilities, and debt-like instruments;

“Enable borrowers to seek relief from excessive confidentiality clauses so they can proceed with more transparent data reporting;

“Promote effective and prudent use of collateral and liens in sovereign borrowing; and Insist that borrowers and lenders avoid violations of legal requirements of other creditors, such as negative pledge clauses.

“The transparency of all government financial commitments and investments is a key step in creating an attractive investment climate and could make substantial progress this year to deliver better outcomes for people in developing countries.”