US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said there’s a pressing need to bolster the finances of the International Monetary Fund’s flagship trust that tackles poverty, and that richer nations must do more to support poorer countries facing debt stress.

“I see great urgency in bringing the IMF’s concessional window, the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust, to a more financially sustainable footing,” she said in Paris Thursday. “This is critical to make sure lower-income countries have adequate resources at the fund.”

Yellen is among global finance chiefs gathering in the French capital for the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact, hosted by President Emmanuel Macron. The forum aims to tackle issues ranging from the reform of multilateral development banks and addressing debt overhangs to financing green infrastructure and mobilizing financing for countries vulnerable to climate change.

The IMF in March called on its wealthier member countries to help it meet a fund-raising target of about $6.3-billion for the trust — its main vehicle for providing interest-free loans to the lowest-income countries — at a time of rising demand from economies in distress.

The US plans to pledge about $21-billion for the IMF’s trusts that support nations in need, a senior Treasury official told reporters Wednesday, but authorizing some types of additional capital for international financial institutions would require approval from Congress.

Yellen said the US will “redouble” its commitment to improving the multilateral debt-restructuring process for struggling countries. Disagreements between China and members of the Paris Club of creditors on how to treat some loans have hobbled negotiations for countries including Zambia.

The southern African nation has been a test case for the Group of 20’s Common Framework for debt restructuring, and an agreement has been in the making for more than three years.

Yellen said she had been encouraged by progress on debt restructuring talks for Zambia, adding to optimism in recent days among officials from the African nation and its creditors.

“The talks in the Paris Club have been quite encouraging and we’re hopeful for really clear and meaningful progress in the near future,” she said. “We are very encouraged by what we’re seeing there.”

She added that other urgent pending cases, such as those of Ghana and Sri Lanka, must also move forward quickly. Yellen is meeting with the presidents of those two nations in Paris Thursday.

Unlike in several past instances in which she called for progress on the issue, Yellen did not single out China for criticism in her remarks.

Her comments come amid rising optimism that Zambia’s creditors, including China, are close to approving a restructuring deal. The Treasury official who spoke on Wednesday told reporters they hoped an agreement was “imminent.”

EASING PRESSURES
The Treasury chief said the US is also exploring new ways for the World Bank to deliver favorable loans, including those with special provisions designed to protect developing countries from climate risk.

“We would also like to see the World Bank offer borrowers the option to add climate-resilient debt clauses to their loan agreements,” she said. “These clauses will help ease pressures on countries if a natural disaster strikes.”

Bloomberg Philanthropies is one of the official sponsors of the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact.