A country’s ability to determine its own future is inexorably linked to the who, what, why, when and how of public debt — who holds it, what it funds, why it was incurred, when and just how it must be repaid. Managing public debt is not just a financial challenge — it is as much a story of survival. This struggle plays out at every level in the Global South: nations work to preserve their autonomy, governments fight to maintain stability, communities strive to retain essential services, and individuals battle to make ends meet. Eighty-five per cent of the world population, suffering from crippling public debt, is currently surviving under austerity measures. Public debt disproportionately impacts women. Debt-burdened Maldives exemplifies the need for a foreign policy approach in debt negotiations that centres individual lives, women and communities. […]