Kosovo: The International Monetary Fund has approved a €51.6 million (US$56.06 million) loan for Kosovo to tackle the economic crisis caused by the new coronavirus and address urgent balance of payments issues, the international lender said. It said the pandemic will hit Kosovo's economy hard.
The economy is expected to contract by 5 per cent in 2020 as tourism receipts, remittances, exports of goods, and FDI will decrease due to travel restrictions and the effect of COVID-19 in trading partners and remittance-originating countries," the IMF said in a statement.
The small Balkan country had expected to see economic growth of around 4 per cent this year. The government said it will inject €180 million into the roughly €8 billion economy to help the private sector cope with the crisis.
As of late on Friday around 250 people were infected with the coronavirus in Kosovo, including seven deaths. Following is a list of countries slated to receive funds from IMF and World Bank emergency facilities, sorted by region:
AFRICA
Ethiopia - US$82.6 million (World Bank) Cabo Verde US$5 million (World Bank) Chad - US$115 million (IMF) Democratic Republic of Congo - US$47.2 million (World Bank) Djibouti - US$5 million (World Bank) Gabon - US$147 million (IMF) Gambia - US$10 million (World Bank) Ghana - US$35 million (World Bank) Ganya - US$50 million (World Bank) Madagascar - US$166 million (IMF) Mauritania - US$5.2 million (World Bank) Sao Tome and Principe - US$2.5 million (World Bank) Senegal - US$221 million (IMF) and US$20 million (World Bank) Sierra Leone - US$7.5 million (World Bank) Tunisia - US$745 million (IMF)
ASIA
Afghanistan - US$100.4 million (World Bank) Cambodia - US$20 million (World Bank) India - US$1 billion (World Bank) Kyrgyzstan - US$120.9 million (IMF) Maldives - US$7.3 million (World Bank) Mongolia - US$26.9 million (World Bank) Pakistan - US$200 million (World Bank) Sri Lanka - US$128.6 million (World Bank) Tajikistan - US$11.3 million (World Bank) Yemen - US$26.9 million (World Bank)
LATIN AMERICA AND CARIBBEAN
Argentina - US$35 million (World Bank) Ecuador - US$20 million (World Bank) Haiti - US$20 million (World Bank) Honduras - US$143 million (IMF) Paraguay - US$20 million (World Bank)
EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA
Albania - US$190.5 million (IMF) Kosovo - US$56.5 million (IMF) North Macedonia - US$191.83 million (IMF)
ISTANBUL: The World Bank Group (WBG) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday urged creditors to suspend debt payments of the world’s poorest countries in the wake of the corona-virus pandemic.
In a joint statement on the eve of the G20 virtual summit on COVID-19, the institutions said the global crisis will have “severe economic and social consequences” in International Development Association (IDA) countries.
“IDA countries, [are] home to a quarter of the world’s population and two-thirds of the world’s population living in extreme poverty,” read the statement. IDA countries, which are currently 76 in number, had gross national income per capita under $1,175 in 2020, according to the association's website.
“This [suspension of debt payments] will help with IDA countries’ immediate liquidity needs to tackle challenges posed by the coronavirus outbreak and allow time for an assessment of the crisis impact and financing needs for each country,” read the statement.
“We invite G20 leaders to task the WBG and the IMF to make these assessments, including identifying the countries with unsustainable debt situations, and to prepare a proposal for comprehensive action by official bilateral creditors to address both the financing and debt relief needs of IDA countries.”
Leaders of G20 countries will hold a virtual meeting on the COVID-19 pandemic on Thursday, which will be chaired by Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
