Life and Debt

Life and Debt is a 2001 American documentary film directed by Stephanie Black. It examines the economic and social situation in Jamaica, and specifically the impact thereon of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank's structural adjustment policies. Its starting point is the essay A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid. These loans were conditional on structural adjustment policies, which required Jamaica to enact major economic reforms, including trade liberalization, privatization, and deregulation. However, the reforms were not successful; the film claims the reforms left Jamaica with $4.6 billion in debt. The film blames the World Bank and the IMF for causing this situation. The film features a number of interviews with former Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley in which he critiques the system of International Financial Institution loans. He is particularly critical of required structural adjustments as an attack on the sovereignty of many former colonial nations and suggests the system is akin to imperialism or neocolonialism.