HC Deb 15 October 2003 vol 411 cc280-1W
Dr. Cable

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much debt owing to the UK has been written-off by the Export Credits Guarantee Department in the last five years; and if she will list the countries for which the written-off debt was due, and the amounts written off for each country. [130912]

Mr. Mike O'Brien

During the period from 1 April 1998 to 31 August 2003, ECGD has written off a total of £848 million debt. The amounts written off are broken down by financial year and by market in the following table.

Amounts written off by ECGD last five financial years plus current financial year to 31 August 2003
Market 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 Total
Bolivia 6,160,137 0 0 11,671,383 0 0 17,831,520
Bosnia and Herzegovina 3,021,121 0 0 0 0 0 3,021,121
Burkina Faso 0 0 0 0 1,851,737 0 1,851,737
Cameroon 5,189,345 6,046,275 7,387,463 8,761,599 8,202,179 3,542,446 39,129,307
Central African Republic 172,072 28,157 27,651 13,429 0 0 241,309
Cote d'Ivoire 2,445,306 0 0 0 9,873,984 553,721 12,873,011
Democratic Republic of Congo 0 0 0 0 113,037,774 947,807 113,985,581
Ethiopia 0 287,854 532,481 213,245 125,638 66,185 1,225,403
Ghana 0 0 0 0 27,496,319 3,703,403 31,199,722
Guinea 0 0 707,668 1,106,413 772,224 255,998 2,842,303
Guyana 0 11,915,740 0 0 0 0 11,915,740
Madagascar 0 0 523,114 1,254,431 1,126,626 219,756 3,123,927
Malawi 0 0 0 90,920 84,559 40,543 216,022
Mali 0 0 0 0 4,215,974 0 4,215,974
Mauritania 54,307 763,553 545,964 523,831 5,305,546 0 7,193,201
Mozambique 5,692,529 13,484,210 0 71,538,564 0 0 90,715,303
Nicaragua 0 0 0 156,212 105,515 23,812 285,539
Niger 386,665 192,552 1,170,852 1,203,292 1,084,263 532,403 4,570,027
Senegal 1,528,862 0 26,253 39,523 48,681 28,049 1,671,368
Serbia and Montenegro 0 0 0 270,067,645 0 0 270,067,645
Sierra Leone 0 0 0 225,022 44,805 6,275 276,102
Tanzania 5,126,063 4,477,751 17,525,512 92,700,686 19,167 0 119,849,179
Togo 81,421 0 0 0 0 0 81,421
Uganda 0 0 5,724,537 0 0 0 5,724,537
Zambia 0 21,863,232 16,790,093 28,654,900 27,384,399 9,518,120 104,210,744
Totals 29,857,828 59,059,324 50,961,588 488,221,095 200,779,390 19,438,518 848,317,743

All of the recipients of the debt reduction, with the exception of Serbia and Montenegro, have received the debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative.