IMF To Provide $1000b In Aid To Countries Fighting Coronavirus

International Monetary Fund (IMF) chairwoman and managing director Kristalina Georgieva said on Wednesday that member countries are demanding huge help due to the corona virus epidemic. So far, 102 out of 189 member countries have sought help so far. In a press conference meeting with the World Bank, she said that IMF is committed to disbursing full-capacity loans of one thousand billion dollars to meet the demand for help.

Both IMF chief Georgieve and World Bank President David Malpas praised the decision by the finance ministers of the G20 countries and central bank governors to suspend the debt installment of loans to poor countries. According to the IMF’s new assessment, the global economy may decline by three percent due to this epidemic. The global economy declined by 0.1 percent in 2009 during the global financial crisis.

Now there is a possibility of decline in per capita income in 170 countries

The IMF chief said, “This is a crisis never seen before. Due to this epidemic, the global economy is going through the biggest crisis since the Great Economic Recession of the 1930s. Global GDP may fall by three percent. Our assessment three months ago was that per capita income would increase in 160 countries out of our member countries, but now per capita income is expected to fall in 170 countries”

Corona virus caused havoc for a long time…

She said that this is the first time in history when the IMF’s macro-economists are taking advice from disaster experts. These experts are telling the IMF that the situation may worsen if the virus continues to wreak havoc for a long time or delay in the development of vaccines and treatment drugs. Georgieva said that the IMF has already increased emergency aid programs from $ 500 million to $ 100 million. She said that the IMF is also preparing that as soon as economies start recovering from this crisis, their activities can be resumed.

She said, “We also need to think about what crises we might face at the other end of this crisis.” She said that the “IMF board has already approved the loan assistance package for the 25 poorest member countries. We will need to raise resources in such a situation. It is heartening that the IMF got unanimous support in the morning meeting with the G20 countries”.