Experts call for action to guard against global economic recession

KABUL (SW) – Anylsts believe the Islamic Emirate authorities must take immediate and effective action to guard against devastating impacts of the likely economic recession on the global level.

Countries around the world are facing recession as the Ukraine war hits economies already rocked by the Covid pandemic, the World Bank has warned.

Less developed countries in Europe and east Asia face a “major recession”, it said.

The risk of high inflation and low growth – so-called “stagflation” – is also higher, World Bank President David Malpass said.

Energy and food bills have been rising around the world.

“The war in Ukraine, lockdowns in China, supply-chain disruptions, and the risk of stagflation are hammering growth. For many countries, recession will be hard to avoid,” Mr Malpass said.

He also warned in the World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects report for June that the danger of stagflation was “considerable”.

“Subdued growth will likely persist throughout the decade because of weak investment in most of the world. With inflation now running at multi-decade highs in many countries and supply expected to grow slowly, there is a risk that inflation will remain higher for longer.”

Also on Tuesday, the World Bank approved $1.49bn (£1.2bn) of additional funding for Ukraine, which it said “will be used to pay for wages for government and social workers.”

The new financing is part of a more than $4bn support package for the country, which covers areas including healthcare, education and sanitation, reported BBC.

Zakaria Haidari, an economist, told Salam Watandar that every problem in the world hurts Afghanistan, and commodity prices continue to rise, leaving many unable to afford them.

“Prices are high in any country from which traders import goods and even traders do not dare to import because they know how weak the economy is and how low sales and high unemployment are,” he said. “Rising prices could have a negative impact and lead Afghanistan to a crisis of deprivation and hunger.”

Abdul Rahman Habib, a spokesman for the Ministry of Economy, said that despite the worsening global economic situation, the Islamic Emirate had taken a number of steps to improve Afghanistan’s economic situation, such as the Qushtapa project and some mining agreements.

He said work on an economic plan to prioritize mining, agriculture and water management with the relevant agencies to reduce unemployment and poverty was underway and would be completed soon.

ENDS

Share: