Financial Crisis
The financial and economic crisis and resulting global recession have had a devastating impact on low and middle income countries. This has been through inter-related channels including: a squeeze on trade credit and loans; greatly reduced direct investment (major projects postponed or closing); much lower and more infrequent remittances (in some cases remitters are recalling money from their families to survive unemployment); falling commodity prices; and lower demand for goods and services such as tourism. This is having major macroeconomic knock-on effects, and placing great strain on fragile societies.
Trends data and analysis contained on this website show how this is being tracked at a national level through country surveys.
CEMLA held a seminar in March 2009 dealing with the impact of and policy responses to the crisis in the Latin American and Caribbean region. Other Regional and international organisations have established dedicated resources dealing with the impact of the crisis.
Downloads
- “Financial Crisis Hits Latin America Hard”, Strategies for Financing Development #39 (pages 11-12)
- “Monitoring and Analysing the Financial Crisis”, Strategies for Financing Development #38 (pages 14-15)
- "Regional Trends and Impact of the Crisis", Private Capital Flows to LICs: Dealing with Boom and Bust (2010), Chapter 1
- "Dynamic Sectors and the Global Recession", Private Capital Flows to LICs: Dealing with Boom and Bust, Chapter 4
Links
- African Development Bank “Financial Crisis”
- IMF “Key Issues: Financial Crisis”
- Overseas Development Institute “The Global Financial Crisis”
- UN “Voices of the Vulnerable”
- World Bank “Financial Crisis”
Latest work DFI carried out in this area:
20 August - Report on the impact of the global financial crisis
Oxfam commissioned DFI to report on the impact of the global financial crisis on low-income countries' budgets, and their spending to reach the Millennium Development Goals. The report can be seen here, and for press coverage in the Guardian see here.