HONDURAS  Debt treatment -      April 13, 1999

Supporting agreements with the international institutions

IMF programme approved on March 26, 1999

Amounts treated

$411 million

Categories of debt treated

Treatment of arrears as of March 31, 1999

Treatment of maturities falling due from April 1, 1999 up to March 31, 2002

Repayment profile

Treatment under Naples terms (cancellation rate of 67%)

  • repayment of non ODA credits over 23 years, with 6 years of grace, after cancellation to a rate of 67%
  • repayment of ODA credits over 40 years with 16 years of grace

Specific provisions

Possibility to conduct debt swaps

On a voluntary and bilateral basis, the Government of each participating creditor country or its appropriate institutions may sell or exchange, in the framework of debt for nature, debt for aid, debt for equity swaps or other local currency debt swaps: (i) the amounts of outstanding loans treated in the Agreed Minutes as regards official development aid loans; (ii) the amounts of other outstanding credits, loans and consolidations treated in the Agreed Minutes, up to 20% of the amounts of outstanding credits as of September 30, 1992 or up to an amount of $20 million, whichever is higher.

Good will clause

In response to the request of the representatives of the Government of the Republic of Honduras :

a) the Participating Creditor Countries agreed in principle to hold a meeting to consider the matter of the Republic of Honduras' debt service payments falling due after March 31, 2002 and relating to loans or credits pursuant to a contract or other financial arrangement concluded before June 1, 1990 provided:

- that the Republic of Honduras continues to have an appropriate arrangement with the International Monetary Fund;

- that the Republic of Honduras has reached with other creditors effective arrangements meeting the conditions described in the Agreed Minute and has reported in writing to the Chairman of the Paris Club, pursuant to the Agreed Minutes;

- and that the Republic of Honduras has complied with all conditions set out in the Agreed Minutes.

b) Alternatively, if during the three years following the date of the signature of the Agreed Minutes, the Government of the Republic of Honduras has maintained satisfactory relations with the Participating or Observer Creditor Countries, and notably has fully implemented all agreements signed with them and continues to have an appropriate arrangement with the International Monetary Fund, the Participating Creditor Countries agree in principle to hold a meeting to consider the matter of the Republic of Honduras' stock of debt.

Free transferability provision

The Government of the Republic of Honduras will take the relevant administrative measures or extend existing measures to ensure that the private debtors in the Republic of Honduras will be permitted to pay into the Central Bank of Honduras the local currency counterpart of their obligations past due or falling due, corresponding to their debt of any nature owed to or guaranteed by the Participating or Observer Creditor Countries or their appropriate institutions.

Phases

  • First phase : From April 1, 1999 up to March 31, 2000, implemented at the signature of the agreement
  • Second phase : From April 1, 2000 up to March 31, 2001, implemented on July 28, 2000
  • Third phase : From April 1, 2001 up to March 31, 2002, implemented on November 22, 2001

De minimis threshold of 500,000 SDR

Payment of non-consolidated amounts before October 31, 1999

Comparability of treatment provision

In order to secure comparable treatment of its debt due to all its external public or private creditors, the Government of the Republic of Honduras commits itself to negotiate debt reorganization arrangements with all its external creditors providing for comparable debt reduction in net present value as well as comparable terms of repayment of the debts not cancelled.

The Government of the Republic of Honduras commits itself not to accord any category of creditors -and in particular creditor countries not participating in the Agreed Minutes, commercial banks and suppliers- a treatment more favourable than that accorded to the Participating Creditor Countries for credits of comparable maturity and legal nature.

For the purpose of the comparison between the arrangements concluded by the Government of the Republic of Honduras with its creditor countries not listed in the Agreed Minutes on the one hand, and with the Participating Creditor Countries on the other hand, all relevant elements will be taken into account, including the real exposure of the creditor countries not listed in the Agreed Minutes, the level of cash payments received by those creditor countries from the Government of the Republic of Honduras as compared to their share in the Republic of Honduras' external debt, the nature and characteristics of all treatment applied, including debt buy backs, and all characteristics of the reorganized claims and in particular their repayment terms whatever forms they take and in general the financial relations between the Government of the Republic of Honduras and the creditor countries not listed in the Agreed Minutes.

Organisation of the session

Have attended:

Participating creditors
  • CANADA
  • DENMARK
  • FRANCE
  • GERMANY
  • ITALY
  • JAPAN
  • NETHERLANDS
  • SPAIN
  • SWITZERLAND
  • UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Observers
  • IMF
  • Inter-American Development Bank
  • OECD
  • UNCTAD
  • World Bank