The World Bank reports Maldives to be the most financially
affected country from all South Asian countries due to the global crisis,
COVID-19.
Based on the latest country-level data available as of April
7, 2020, World Bank estimated the economic loss of South Asian countries caused
by halting of economic activity, collapsing trade, and greater stress in the financial
and banking sectors. Following the results, Maldives GDP is most likely to
fall by 13.0 to 8.5 percentage in 2020, the heaviest fall by a South Asian
country.
"After tackling the immediate COVID-19 threat, South Asian
countries must keep their sovereign debt sustainable through fiscal prudence
and debt relief initiatives," said Hans Timmer, World Bank Chief
Economist for the South Asia Region. "And looking beyond the present
crisis, lie great opportunities to expand digital technologies for payment
systems and distant learning to unlock remote areas in South Asia."
Other Asian countries including Nepal, Afghanistan, Pakistan
and Sri Lanka are also prone to suffer immense economic loss due to the
restrictions implemented to prevent further spreading of COVID-19. The report urges governments to adopt
temporary spending measures and coordinate with international financial
partners to avoid unsustainable long-term debt levels and fiscal deficits.
The World Bank Group is taking broad, fast action to
help developing countries strengthen their pandemic response, increase disease
surveillance, improve public health interventions, and help the private sector
continue to operate and sustain jobs. It is deploying up to $160 billion in
financial support over the next 15 months to help countries protect the poor
and vulnerable, support businesses, and bolster economic recovery.
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