A/HRC/7/9 page 9 26. However, there are significant relationships between economic and social rights obligations and the development issues and indicators dealt with at the centre of the Millennium Development Goals. Currently, the Goals are the most widely accepted operational reference framework regarding some of these problems; they provide internationally recognized targets, indicators and monitoring structures that allow, in some areas, broad quantification for the realization of economic and social rights and estimations of the related costs. 27. Against this backdrop, the draft guidelines suggest the need for a step-by-step approach. A first step would be to try to elaborate the above-mentioned national minimum standards and core content for each country. In doing so, countries may consider the Millennium Development Goals a transitional threshold. Secondly, countries analyse the coherence of their economic reform policies and debt management in the light of such minimum standards and core content. 28. Based on such an analysis, both creditors and borrowers should look into sustainability of the debt. One entry point of such discussion is to assess if a country is able to achieve the Millennium Development Goals on time while servicing its debt. The guidelines would then call on donors and creditors to redress this situation by renegotiating loan conditions, including a possibility of debt relief, or shifting development cooperation from loans to grants. The Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative was already explicitly designed to help heavily indebted poor countries to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. D. Responsibility of international financial institutions 29. The Commission on Human Rights had requested the independent expert to draft guidelines to be followed by States and by private and public, national and international financial institutions. However, the discussion of the human rights obligations of international financing institutions, particularly the World Bank and IMF, has been controversial. IMF tends to argue that its articles of agreement do not make reference to human rights. 30. While it can be questioned whether or not international financial institutions are bound by human rights obligations as part of customary international law, it is undisputed that they are multi-State actors governed by their member States. States that are shareholders of international financial institutions are bound by international human rights law, as they are signatories and parties to human rights instruments. Enhancing coherence among multilateral institutions in relation to human rights principles would reduce the danger of providing conflicting policy advice and the need to face unacceptable trade-offs between macroeconomic requirements and human rights obligations. It would place the Governments of developing countries in a better position to uphold their international human rights obligations when negotiating with donors and creditors. E. Human rights impact assessments 31. The draft guidelines emphasize that meeting the requirements of foreign debt servicing economic reforms needs to be balanced with human rights obligations. In fact, sound macroeconomic management, underpinned by the stability of basic commodity prices and sufficient fiscal space for public and social expenditures, should be conducive to enhanced enjoyment of human rights.