Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday announced a 10-point plan to avert the economic collapse in developing countries due to the Covid-19.
Prime Minister Imran Khan said that rich countries have injected $13 trillion as a fiscal stimulus to revive their economies but the developing countries have much lower resources so he proposed ten-point agenda to the world community to avert economic collapse.
The 10-point agenda presented by Prime Minister @ImranKhanPTI at #UNGASS31 for urgent action in order to prevent economic collapse in developing countries.#UNGASS pic.twitter.com/4RV1n1ILXY
— Prime Minister's Office, Pakistan (@PakPMO) December 4, 2020
While addressing a two-day session of the United Nation General Assembly on response to coronavirus pandemic, the premier Imran Khan presented 10-point urgent economic action plan:
- Debt suspension till the end of the pandemic for low income and most stressed countries
- Cancellation of debt of least developed countries
- Restructuring of the public sector debt of other developing countries under an agreed inclusive multilateral framework
- A general allocation of special drawing rights of $500 billion
- Expanded concessional financing to lower income countries through multilateral development banks
- Creation of a new ‘liquidity and sustainability facility’, which should provide short-term loans at lower costs
- Fulfilment of the 0.7 % official development assistance commitments
- Mobilizing the required $1.5 trillion annual investment in sustainable infrastructure
- Achievement of the agreed target of mobilising $100 billion per year for climate action in developing countries
- Immediate action to stop the massive illicit financial outflows from developing countries to rich countries, to offshore tax havens and at the same time, immediate return of their assets stolen by corrupt politicians and criminals back to these countries.
He said “In Pakistan, we had a successful policy of smart lockdown. Our efforts were aimed at ensuring that not only we save our people from the virus but also prevent them from dying from hunger. We provided a relief package of around $8 billion which was almost 3% of our GSP to support the poor and to keep the economy afloat at the same time.”
He further said that so far, this strategy worked but now we are confronted more with a far more aggressive second wave of the virus. We are facing now the challenges of maintaining and reviving our economic growth as well as dealing with the increasing number of cases which are occupying our hospital beds.
Prime Minister, Imran Khan reminded the summit about his call for Global Initiative Debt Relief in April this year. He expressed his gratitude to G-20 for debt suspension and its subsequent extension till June next year. He said, “We also appreciate the rapid lending facilities activated by the IMF and World Bank.”
