A/RES/74/203 External debt sustainability and development private, contribute to debt workouts, as appropriate, in order to ensure the debt sustainability of those countries, and invites creditors, both private and public, that are not yet fully participating in debt relief initiatives to substantially increase their participation, including by providing comparable treatment, to the extent possible, to debtor countries that have concluded sustainable debt relief agreements with creditors; 14. Stresses the need for the international community to remain vigilant in monitoring the debt situation of developing countries, including the least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States, and to continue to take effective measures, preferably within existing frameworks, when applicable, to address the debt problem of those countries, acknowledges that sound debt management initiatives can play a key role in liberating resources that should be directed towards activities consistent with the eradication of poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, and with the promotion of sustained economic growth and development and the internationally agreed development goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals, and in this regard urges countries to direct the resources freed through debt relief, in particular through debt cancellation and reduction, towards achieving those objectives, including in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, according to their national priorities and strategies; 15. Notes that countries can seek to negotiate, as a last resort, on a case -bycase basis and through existing frameworks, agreements on temporary debt standstills between debtors and creditors in order to help to mitigate the adverse impacts of a debt crisis and stabilize macroeconomic developments; 16. Acknowledges the efforts of, and invites creditors to provide additional flexibility to, developing countries affected by natural disasters so as to allow them to address their national debt concerns, while taking into account their specific economic and social situations and needs; 17. Recognizes that the detrimental impact of disasters on the debt sustainability of many least developed countries, small island developing States and middle-income countries warrants further attention and that preserving external debt sustainability requires ex ante financing to enable the systematic reduction of disaster risk and resilience-building, as well as the disclosure of disaster risk to avoid exacerbating debt distress, when feasible, and in this regard recognizes that many least developed countries, small island developing States and middle-income countries have limited access to financing to invest in disaster risk reduction for resilience before and after disasters; 18. Also recognizes that, in some cases, the use of public debt and renewed external borrowing to absorb the impact of a natural disaster could lead to higher debt servicing for developing countries and constrain their growth and their capacity to invest in long-term resilience-building measures, and further acknowledges that, with each new disaster, financial vulnerabilities grow and domestic response capacities weaken; 19. Further recognizes the importance of the creation of robust, nationally appropriate legal and regulatory frameworks for sustainable national and municipal borrowing, on the basis of sustainable debt management, supported by adequate revenues and capacities, by means of local creditworthiness, as well as expanded sustainable municipal debt markets, when appropriate, and in this regard underlines the importance of the establishment of appropriate financial intermediaries for urban financing, such as regional, national, subnational and local development funds or development banks, including pooled financing mechanisms, which can catalyse public and private, national and international financ ing; 6/9 19-22416