Negotiating Debt

As the foremost actor in the international effort to resolve the Third World debt crisis, the International Monetary Fund is at the centre of policy debates that directly affect the lives of hundreds of millions of people and the survival of numerous fragile democracies. Although its influence is great, the coherence of IMF policy objectives has often been questioned. This book is a study of how the IMF determines the lending conditions for its member states. Based on numerous interviews with International Monetary Fund officials and detailed case studies of the lending process, the book discusses a new model of IMF decision-making that emphasizes genuine bargaining and negotiation between the IMF and its client states. The IMF is shown to be an institution that can display flexibility and creativity despite its expansive and beleaguered international bureaucracy. The author provides an analysis of the IMF as an institution, its influence in international finance and debt restructuring, and the nature of the global debt crisis in general.