Developing Country Debt: Debt Swaps for Development and Nature Provide Little Debt Relief

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO examined issues concerning debt swaps for development and nature, focusing on: (1) the number of developing countries that have participated in debt swaps, the extent to which debt swaps have reduced total external debt, and the number of programs that have been undertaken; (2) the advantages and disadvantages of debt swaps and the U.S. Agency for International Development's (AID) efforts to support private voluntary organizations (PVO) that participate in such swaps; and (3) whether the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) implemented the Department of the Treasury's April 1988 recommendations on debt-for-nature swaps.