The board of directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) confirmed in late January that Guinea-Bissau had met the conditions that enable it to qualify for debt relief under the enhanced heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative. In response, the AfDB approved a US$60.4m debt-relief programme, as well as a US$23.7m additional debt cancellation granted on an exceptional basis. The IMF and the World Bank announced in December that Guinea-Bissau had reached HIPC completion point after meeting the necessary criteria, including the implementation of a national poverty-reduction strategy and the maintenance of macroeconomic stability. The AfDB's debt cancellation forms part of a total irrevocable debt write-off worth US$1.2bn, which should help to reduce the country's stock of external debt from an estimated 126.4% of GDP at end-2009 to a more sustainable 28.4% of GDP (January 2011, Economic policy).