Giving Compass' Take:

• Devex reports on a UN financing forum, which urged action to help vulnerable Caribbean nations with debt relief ahead of hurricane season.

• What would that relief look like and who would pay? Could the International Monetary Fund set up a trust? These are a just a few questions that need to be answered as an action plan is formulated.

• Read all about the long-term strategy response for Hurricane Maria.

Concern over debt vulnerability and risks for small island developing states in the Caribbean, likely set to face another strong hurricane season this year, guided an emerging consensus for action at the United Nations Forum on Financing for Development last week, according to the head of a leading nonprofit financial reform organization.

So far, there is no specific debt relief action plan for the Caribbean region, but it’s something to watch for at upcoming global summits, including the opening of the U.N. General Assembly in the fall, said Eric LeCompte, the executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Jubilee USA Network.

Debt relief discussions factored into various events at the four-day forum, during which U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed called for long-term investment and domestic resource mobilization to help close the annual funding gap of $2.5 trillion for financing the Sustainable Development Goals.

An ambassador from Antigua and Barbuda also reiterated a call for a Caribbean debt relief process.

“We see a consensus emerging about the need for a debt relief process for Caribbean islands to protect them from hurricanes and other natural disasters,” LeCompte said. “What people are really talking about now, is how do we have a permanent process in place that looks to structure and relieve debt after a crisis occurs?”

Read the full article about debt relief by Amy Lieberman at Devex International Development