Africa-Press – Botswana. World Bank President David Malpass and International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said there was a growing risk of global recession, with inflation remaining an ongoing problem following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“There is a risk and a real danger of a worldwide recession next year,” Malpass said in a dialogue with Georgieva at the start of the two institutions’ annual meetings. He cited slowing growth in developed economies and currency depreciation in many developing countries.
Georgieva said the IMF sees “a significant problem” in China, the world’s second-largest economy, where volatility is hampering growth.
Debt Crisis
The world is about to face “a fifth wave of debt crisis”, warned the president of the World Bank (WB), David Malpass, as he launched an appeal for support to countries in difficulty.
The pandemic has led many countries to take out more loans to support the economy, now facing debt difficulties due to the effects of inflation and rising interest rates.
“I’m worried about the level of indebtedness, worried about several countries,” Malpass said at an online press conference.
“Only in 2022, about 44 billion dollars of debt, held by the private sector or by other States, matured”, in several poor countries, an amount greater than the international aid that these countries receive, he pointed out.
“We are currently facing what I think is a fifth wave of debt crisis,” he added, calling for “more transparency” about debt levels.
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