Matters of Scale.

• Position: World debt - Brief Article - Statistical Data Included - Illustration

MATTERS OF SCALE A Fate Worse than Debt Amount owed by the world's 47 poorest and most indebted nations $422 billion Amount of money spent by Western industrialized nations on weapons and soldiers every 12 months $422 billion Amount raised by Live Aid in 1985 to combat famine in Ethiopia $200 million Amount all African countries pay back on foreign debts every week $200 million Amount the United Nations estimates is needed annually to curb the African AIDS epidemic through education, prevention, and care $15.0 billion Amount African nations pay to service their debts each year (amount paid just in interest) $13.5 billion Annual income per person in Zaire $110 Amount each resident of Zaire would have to raise to pay off the country's debt to foreign creditors $236 Percent of the Zambian budget allocated for foreign debt repayment in 1997 40 percent Percent of the Zambian budget allocated for basic social service including vaccinations and education 7 percent Percent of debt owed by the world's most heavily indebted nations that the World Bank and International...