In this episode of DebtTalks, Paola Subacchi and Martin Kessler explore what happens when a country begins to face mounting debt pressures. What are the early warning signs, and when does concern turn into crisis? The discussion also delves into the options available to heavily indebted countries – from restructuring to relief – and take a closer look at how the IMF’s Debt Sustainability Analysis shapes decisions along the way.

Hosts & Guests

Paola Subacchi is Professor and Chair in Sovereign Debt and Finance at Sciences Po, and Professor of Political Economy of Europe at the University of Bologna. She is also a partner at Essential Economics, a London-based consultancy that advises governments, international organisations, and private companies.

Martin Kessler is the Executive Director of the Finance for Development Lab. Previously, he worked as an economist in the Development Cooperation Directorate of the OECD, focusing on trends of development finance for developing countries, and debt risks in particular.

Prior to this, Martin worked at the World Bank on development dynamics in East Asia, and held research positions at the Brussels-based economic think-tank Bruegel and the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington DC.

Production Paola Subacchi

Coordination Nathalie Corvée

Musique Nils Bertinelli

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Episode 13 of DebtTalks dives into how Latin America can unlock domestic finance to power - funding major infrastructure while supporting SMEs - to the rise of innovative tools like green and thematic bonds in the Caribbean, the episode explores what’s working across a diverse region.

With debt costs squeezing fiscal space, the conversation highlights the urgent need for cheaper financing. It also underscores the importance of stronger multilateral cooperation - moving beyond siloed approaches - to scale impact and drive sustainable development.

Paola Subacchi is Professor and Chair in Sovereign Debt and Finance at Sciences Po, and Professor of Political Economy of Europe at the University of Bologna. She is also a partner at Essential Economics, a London-based consultancy that advises governments, international organisations, and private companies.

Sebastián Nieto-Parra is an Economist at the OECD Development Centre, where he works on the production of the annual report Latin American Economic Outlook. He also teaches economic policy of emerging markets at Sciences Po, Paris. His research interests include banking regulation, international finance and political economy in emerging countries. In particular, he has been researching the structure of the primary bond market. He has presented a number of his papers in various academia and policy-making oriented conferences. Before joining the OECD, Mr. Nieto-Parra was an Economist for Latin America at Santander Bank, Madrid.

Production Paola Subacchi

Coordination Nathalie Corvée

Musique Nils Bertinelli

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

As the European Union has emerged as a major bond issuer since the Covid-19 pandemic, this episode explores the fast-growing market for sovereign, sub-sovereign and supranational debt. Paola Subacchi and Lawrence Duquesne-Garner trace the EU’s journey as a bond issuer, revealing how crisis-driven financing is turning into a long-term investment strategy.

Hosts & Guests

Paola Subacchi is Professor and Chair in Sovereign Debt and Finance at Sciences Po, and Professor of Political Economy of Europe at the University of Bologna. She is also a partner at Essential Economics, a London-based consultancy that advises governments, international organisations, and private companies.

Lawrence Duquesne-Garner is a Managing Director within Crédit Agricole CIB's Sovereign, Supranational and Agency (SSA) debt capital markets team, which he joined in London in 2014. He is responsible for the public sector bond issuers in Germany, Switzerland, the Nordic region, as well as the European Commission (NextGenerationEU).

Prior to joining Crédit Agricole in 2014, Lawrence held several front office positions within investment banks in Paris, Frankfurt and London. These included positions in public sector debt capital markets as well as Cross-Asset Solutions Sales and Export Finance negotiations.

Production Paola Subacchi

Coordination Nathalie Corvée

Musique Nils Bertinelli

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

As advanced economies cut international aid, Paola Subacchi and Clemence Landers assess the consequences for developing countries and the global economy. As funding declines, the risks multiply: an aid crisis can deepen debt distress, evolve into a broader development crisis, and ultimately trigger governance breakdowns. At stake is the very purpose of foreign assistance – preventing instability, economic collapse, and governance breakdown.

Hosts & Guests

Paola Subacchi is Professor and Chair in Sovereign Debt and Finance at Sciences Po, and Professor of Political Economy of Europe at the University of Bologna. She is also a partner at Essential Economics, a London-based consultancy that advises governments, international organisations, and private companies.

Clemence Landers is vice president and senior policy fellow at the Center for Global Development, as well as a trustee on the Center for Global Development Europe's board of trustees.

Prior to joining CGD, she worked at the US Treasury Department on US engagement with the multilateral development banks and as a desk economist covering several countries in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Production Paola Subacchi

Coordination Nathalie Corvée

Musique Nils Bertinelli

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

In this episode Paola Subacchi and Barthélemy Faye explore the shifting landscape of finance for development in Africa. As countries expand their access to capital markets and diversify funding sources, new financial tools are reshaping how debt is managed. At the forefront are debt swaps, which replace expensive debt with cheaper, more flexible financing – creating fiscal space while supporting critical development priorities.

Hosts & Guests

Paola Subacchi is Professor and Chair in Sovereign Debt and Finance at Sciences Po, and Professor of Political Economy of Europe at the University of Bologna. She is also a partner at Essential Economics, a London-based consultancy that advises governments, international organisations, and private companies.

Barthélemy Faye is a Partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP His practice focuses on corporate and financial matters and Africa-related transactions, including energy and natural resources projects, financings, acquisitions and JVs, private equity, and sovereign debt.

Production Paola Subacchi

Coordination Nathalie Corvée

Musique Nils Bertinelli

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

This episode features Paola Subacchi in conversation with former EU Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni. They explore how ageing, climate pressures and, more recently, defence spending are driving public debt higher, while growth remains elusive and interest rates stay relatively high. The discussion revisits Europe’s response to the sovereign debt crisis and Covid, before turning to a largely overlooked challenge in developing countries – “defaulting on development.”

Paolo Gentiloni is Co-Chair of the UN Group of Experts to promote policy solutions to resolve the debt crisis in developing countries. From 2019 to 2024, Mr Gentiloni was European Commissioner for Economy. He served as Prime Minister of Italy from 2016 to 2018 and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (2013-2014).

Paola Subacchi is Professor and Chair in Sovereign Debt and Finance at Sciences Po, and Professor of Political Economy of Europe at the University of Bologna. She is also a partner at Essential Economics, a London-based consultancy that advises governments, international organisations, and private companies.

Production Paola Subacchi

Coordination Nathalie Corvée

Musique Nils Bertinelli

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Join Paola Subacchi and Guillaume Arditti for a lively and engaging conversation on financial constraints that developing countries face – and how innovative financial tools can help unlock the funding they need to drive development.

Guillaume Arditti is a founding partner of Belvedere Advisory, a strategic and financial consulting firm dedicated to emerging markets. Since January 2024, he has also been an associate researcher at the Jacques Delors Institute, specializing in EU-Africa relations. He began his career at the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) in South Africa, before holding leadership roles at Natixis and BNP Paribas, where he focused on Natural Resources financing and strategy for Africa. He has also taught in the African Studies program at Sciences Po.

Paola Subacchi is Professor and Chair in Sovereign Debt and Finance at Sciences Po, and Professor of Political Economy of Europe at the University of Bologna. She is also a partner at Essential Economics, a London-based consultancy that advises governments, international organisations, and private companies.

From 2019 to 2024 she was at Queen Mary University of London, where she helped establish the Queen Mary Global Policy Institute. Previously, she directed the International Economics Research Department at Chatham House (The Royal Institute of International Affairs) in London.

Production Paola Subacchi

Coordination Nathalie Corvée

Musique Nils Bertinelli

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Join Paola Subacchi and Piera Tortora for an in-depth discussion on how international policy cooperation can respond to pressing global challenges, including debt and climate. The episode also explores the Pact for Prosperity, People and the Planet – a global coalition established at the 2023 Summit for the New Global Financing Pact – and its potential to drive meaningful reforms of the international financial architecture.

Piera Tortora serves as Head of the Secretariat of the Paris Pact for People and the Planet (4P), a global alliance of 68 countries advocating for international financial reform. A veteran of the OECD (2011–2024), she previously founded the Sustainable Ocean for All Initiative and led work on development finance and sustainable tourism. Earlier, she conducted economic analysis for the UN-FAO and the UN-ECE. She holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Rome “La Sapienza” and has taught at the Geneva Graduate Institute and Sant'Anna University of Pisa.

Paola Subacchi is Professor and Chair in Sovereign Debt and Finance at Sciences Po, and Professor of Political Economy of Europe at the University of Bologna. She is also a partner at Essential Economics, a London-based consultancy that advises governments, international organisations, and private companies. From 2019 to 2024 she was at Queen Mary University of London, where she helped establish the Queen Mary Global Policy Institute. Previously, she directed the International Economics Research Department at Chatham House (The Royal Institute of International Affairs) in London.

Production Paola Subacchi

Coordination Nathalie Corvée

Musique Nils Bertinelli

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.