The Twenty-fifth Session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers (Session for a Better Future for the Peoples of the Islamic Ummah) held in Doha, State of Qatar, from 17 to 19 Dhul Quida 1418H (15-17 March 1998),

Recalling Resolution No. 5/8-E (IS) adopted by the Eighth Session of the Islamic Summit Conference;

Recalling Resolution No. 5/24-E adopted by the Twenty-fourth Session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers;

Expressing its deep anxiety over the external debts of the developing Member States which have been increasing at an alarming rate for the last few years;

Noting with satisfaction that the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has written off the official debt of a certain number of least developed/landlocked and/or Sahelian Member States;

Appreciating the initiative of His Highness the Emir of the State of Kuwait, who as Chairman of the Fifth Session of the Organization of the Islamic Summit Conference, declared in his speech to the UN General Assembly on 27/9/1990 that in order to alleviate the burden of indebtedness of the developing States, the State of Kuwait took the initiative of writing off the interests due on development loans extended to developing States;

Also expressing its appreciation for the efforts made by His Majesty King Hassan II, Chairman of the Seventh Islamic Summit and the Secretary General in the framework of the implementation of the resolutions of the Seventh Islamic Summit on the debt of OIC Member States;

Having taken note of the recommendations of the Twenty-first Session of the Islamic Commission for Economic, Cultural and Social Affairs;

Having also taken note of the report of the Secretary General,

1. Appeals to international creditors to continue adopting every necessary measure to cut down the debt of OIC Member States, in particular through staggered settlement of debts, deferred amortization, reduced and favourable interest rates or swapping debts for financing various development projects.

2. Expresses its appreciation for the international initiative for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs) and reaffirms the urgent need for effective equitable, development-oriented and durable solutions to the external debt and debt-servicing problems of developing countries, and to help them exit from the rescheduling process.

3. Urges that approach in the debt settlement should cover all types of debt, including multilateral debt, and all indebted developing countries, and incorporate measures aimed at a once-and-for all reduction arrangement to reduce their debt burden to a scale that would allow them to resume their economic growth and development.

4. Expresses its gratitude to Member States which have already responded favourably to the above request and appeals to Member States to continue the transfer of capital through grants and concessionary loans to Member States, especially to the least developed, the land-locked and/or Sahelian countries.

5. Renews the call made to the international community, especially the developed countries, to offer substantial reduction of African debts and lowering of the burden of servicing charges while ensuring that this process is combined with the flow of fresh and considerable finances at soft-terms, to African countries.

6. Appeals to those Member States that have not yet done so and to industrialized countries and international organizations to implement the resolution of the Seventh Session of the Islamic Summit Conference on the external debt of OIC Member States.

7. Appeals also to Member States which are donors to use their influence with the International Donor Community to take initiatives to overcome the external debt burden of OIC developing and least developed Member States, with regard to implementing this resolution.

8. Requests the Secretary General to submit a report thereon to the Twenty-sixth Session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers.

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