Turn Debt Into Hope

Why ‘Turn Debt Into Hope’?  3.3 billion people – or nearly half the world’s population – live in countries that spend more money on debt than on healthcare. This was one of the more shocking statistics to emerge from a recent online town hall organised by Caritas Internationalis, the charitable arm of the Catholic Church. Held on Wednesday 28^th May 2025, the webinar brought together more than 200 individuals – humanitarian workers, internationally-recognised economists, and senior Vatican officials – to discuss debt, climate, and development.

Alastair Dutton, Caritas’ Secretary-General, introduced the discussion. He suggested that the fact that so many countries spend more on servicing their debt than on healthcare and education shows that, in today’s economy, human beings are secondary “to economic interest”.

Pope Leo, just weeks into his pontificate has also highlighted the subject of debt reform. Pope Francis, in 2024, called for a “multinational mechanism” to manage debt between countries, avoiding an “every man for himself” mentality in which “it is always the weakest” who lose out. Caritas’ Turn Debt Into Hope campaign, calls for the forgiveness of unjust debt.

The aim of the campaign

The aim of the campaign is to build public pressure around unfair debt practices, particularly in view of the Catholic Church’s ongoing 2025 Jubilee Year, a period traditionally associated with financial clemency.

Among the speakers at the event was Professor Martin Guzmán of Columbia University, a former Argentinian Minister of Economy.  Professor Guzmán highlighted the devastating effects of the global debt system on the world’s poorest countries, which, he said, are charged higher interest rates than their richer peers. He also discussed the work of the Vatican’s Jubilee Commission of Experts, chaired by the Nobel-prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz, which is producing a report on debt and development crises in the Global South.

Meanwhile, Sister Alessandra Smerilli, Secretary of the Holy See’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, highlighted Pope Francis’ notion of the ‘ecological debt’ owed by rich countries towards the poorer countries – which are suffering the effects of a climate crisis which they have contributed much less to causing.

Turn debt into hope

Through the “Turn Debt into Hope” campaign, Caritas Internationalis, which operates in 162 countries, is promoting initiatives focused on:

Promoting debt justice: Advocating for fair and transparent debt cancellation and restructuring supported by equitable financial reforms.

Social mobilisation: Encouraging local communities, especially voices from the Global South, to demand change and hold governments and relevant institutions accountable for creating equitable financial systems.

Partnerships: While Caritas confederation members are at the core of this movement, all faith groups and civil society organisations are invited to join forces and amplify the campaign’s message and push for meaningful reform.

Sign the petition

The “Turn Debt into Hope” campaign invites global participation by signing the petition to advocate for systemic financial reforms, debt cancellation and debt restructuring.

1. Stop the Debt Crisis now by cancelling and remedying unjust and unsustainable debts, without economic policy conditions
2. Prevent Debt Crises from happening again, by addressing their root causes, reforming the global financial system to prioritise people and the planet
3. Establish a permanent, transparent, binding and comprehensive debt framework within the United Nations

Unsustainable, unjust, public debts strip nations of the resources they need to enable children to go to school, families to access healthcare and communities to prepare for climate disasters.

Pope Francis reminded us that “if we really wish to prepare a path to peace in our world, we must commit ourselves to remedying the remote causes of injustice, settling unjust and unpayable debts”.    

Loving and Gracious God,
Help us understand that we have the power and the duty
to act against the injustices that bind people in poverty and
debt.

Grant us the courage to challenge the structures that
perpetuate these conditions, and the strength to work
tirelessly for a world where every person can achieve their
full potential.

Inspire our hearts with Your compassion and justice.
Empower us to be bearers of hope and agents of change.
Together, may we help bring forth solutions rooted in
fairness and equity; economic systems that uplift and
create hope for the downtrodden; and a future where every
nation can walk the path of sustainable development, free
from the shackles of debt.

May we be instruments of Your peace, secure in the
faith that, through our collective effort, poverty can be
overcome.

Amen.

FR. CHARLES CHILUFYA, SJ, ZAMBIA

(From Caritas Campaign Prayer Resource – ‘A Prayer for Wisdom and Justice ‘).

Useful links used to prepare this article:  See https://turndebtintohope.caritas.org/

and also Caritas International – Crippling Debt weighing down developing countries

Some Useful Resources

See https://turndebtintohope.caritas.org/resources/

A Key Factsheet  Key-Facts-EN-1

A Prayer for Wisdom and Justice in addressing external debt Prayer-EN-1

Relay of Hope for Jubilee 2025 – Guidance for organisers  Relay-of-hope-1