Saudi hosts G20 talks on debt crisis, virus recovery
by Anuj Chopra
G20 nations will consider extending debt relief for coronavirus-hit poor countries in the second half of 2020, the group’s finance ministers and central bankers said Saturday after talks aimed at spurring global economic recovery.
The 20 most industrialised nations announced a one-year debt standstill for the world’s poorest nations in April, but campaigners have criticised the measure as grossly inadequate to stave off the knock-on effects of the pandemic.
World Bank president David Malpass on Saturday called for the debt suspension initiative to be extended through the end of 2021, while multiple charities including Oxfam said it needs to be stretched through 2022 to avert a “catastrophe for hundreds of millions of people”.
In their final statement after the virtual talks hosted by Riyadh, G20 ministers and bankers said they would “consider a possible extension of the (debt suspension initiative) in the second half of 2020.”
So far, 42 countries have applied for the initiative, asking for a cumulative $5.3 billion in debt to be deferred, the statement said.
Any extension of the initiative will be based on how the pandemic develops and recommendations of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank that will be submitted to G20 members in advance of their meeting in October, it added.
Saturday’s talks, chaired by Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan and central bank governor Ahmed al-Kholifey, came as the surging pandemic continues to batter the global economy and campaigners warn of a looming debt crisis across poverty-wracked developing nations.
Downgrading its growth forecasts, the IMF last month said it expected global GDP to fall by 4.9 percent this year due to a deeper contraction during lockdowns than previously anticipated. (AFP)
