The economy of East Asia and the Pacific region will grow less than expected due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the World Bank said.
The World Bank lowered its forecast for the growth of the economies of the region, which includes 18 countries – not including China – by 2.5 percent of GDP this year.
Earlier, the World Bank expected that the East Asia and Pacific economy will grow at a rate of 4.4%, as it was expected last April, before the increase in the number of deaths from the emerging coronavirus in the region.
Economy of East Asia
The World Bank stated that the less bright picture for the economies of East Asia and the Pacific is due to the restrictions that were imposed to confront the outbreak of the emerging Coronavirus, which curbed economic activity.
“The economic recovery of developing East Asia and Pacific faces a reversal of fortune,” said Manuela Ferro, World Bank vice president for East Asia and Pacific.
“Whereas in 2020 the region contained COVID-19 while other regions of the world struggled, the rise in COVID-19 cases in 2021 has decreased growth prospects for 2021.”
Myanmar is expected to be the most affected country in the region by the economic repercussions of the pandemic, as the military seized power last February.
The bank’s warning came to confirm the expectations of the Asian Development Bank, based in the Philippine capital, Manila, issued last week that Myanmar’s economy will shrink by about 20% of GDP this year.
At the same time, the Bank expects the growth of China’s economy, which is the second largest in the world, at a rate of 8.5% of GDP this year.
Separately, the World Bank confirmed that Mauritania will not receive grants and funds from the International Development Association (IDA) as of the beginning of the 2022 fiscal year.
According to a letter sent by his representative, residing in Nouakchott, Christina Isabelle Ebenasso Santos, to the Minister of Economic Affairs and Development Othmane Kan, that Mauritania will not benefit in the future from grants, and its benefit will be limited to loans “according to the blended loan rule.”
