"Averting a divergence disaster"

" \n The world must do everything in its power to reverse a dangerous and ever-widening gap that has emerged between rich and poor countries as a result of the pandemic, IMF Managing Director\u00a0Kristalina Georgieva\u00a0stressed during a recent media roundtable. \n \n\n \n \"We must do everything in our power to reverse this dangerous divergence\u2014especially because some parts of the world are moving to the new climate and digital economy, and large parts will be left behind in getting there. This is a major risk and potential historic missed opportunity!\" she said in remarks at the press event. \n \n\n \n The distribution of fiscal support measures and now vaccines is dramatically different across countries. As the United States ramps up vaccines to end the health crisis, only a handful of African nations have launched vaccination campaigns. \n \n\n \n The depth of divergence \n \n\n \n Even though the IMF has forecasted\u00a05.5 percent\u00a0growth for the world in 2021,\u00a0150 economies\u00a0are not going to reach their pre-pandemic level this year. There will still be\u00a0110 economies\u00a0that won't reach their pre-pandemic level in 2022. \n \n\n \n About\u00a050 percent\u00a0of\u00a0emerging markets and developing economies that were converging towards advanced economies per capita income over the last decade are expected to diverge over the 2020\u20132022 period, the MD highlighted. \n \n\n \n \"You can call it the lost decade. It may be a lost generation,\" she warned. \n \n\n \n Three 'R's \n \n\n \n The MD laid out three key priorities: winning the\u00a0 race\u00a0 between a mutating virus and vaccines, boosting the\u00a0 resolve \u00a0of policymakers to continue support until the recovery is durably underway, and\u00a0 revitalizing \u00a0international cooperation when it comes to easing the debt burden on emerging markets and low-income countries. \n \n\n \n \"One thing is clear: future generations will not look kindly on those who underestimate the dangerous divergence facing us today,\" she said. \n \n\n \n A consequential year\u00a0 \n \n\n \n Speaking at the Warwick Economic Summit to about 2000 students from 60 countries, IMF Deputy Managing Director\u00a0Antoinette Sayeh\u00a0reiterated the MD's key message on divergence. \n \n\n \n \"2021 can be the most consequential year of our lifetimes,\"\u00a0she said. \"If we can come together and sow the right policy seeds today, we can exit the crisis with minimal scarring\u00a0 and \u00a0build the foundation of a 21st century economy.\" \n "

"Averting a divergence disaster"

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