DOES THAT AND GETS THE MONEY. THANK YOU, CHERYL.
PROTECTION FOR THE WORLD’S
POOREST MEANWHILE, THE WORLD
BANK PRESIDENT, DAVID MALPASS,
IS CALLING ON COMMERCIAL
CREDITORS TO SUPPORT DEBT RELIEF
FOR THE POOREST COUNTRIES,
URGING THEM NOT TO TAKE A FREE
RIDE ON A SUSPENSION IN DEBT
PAYMENTS.
PAYMENTS. THE DEBT RELIEF INITIATIVE IS
ALREADY A HUGE INITIATIVE.
HE SAYS THE SUPPORT DOES NOT
STOP THERE.
STOP THERE. JOINING US NOW IS THE WORLD BANK
PRESIDENT HIMSELF, DAVID
MALPASS.
MALPASS. AND DAVID, IT’S GREAT TO SEE YOU
THIS MORNING.
THIS MORNING. THANKS SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE.
>> HI, GOOD TO SEE YOU, MARIA.
LOTS GOING ON.
MARIA: WELL, WE KNOW THAT THIS
CORONAVIRUS HAS CERTAINLY PUT
PRESSURE ON SO MANY OF US ACROSS
THE WORLD.
THE WORLD. THE MOVE IN OIL PRICES THIS
MORNING INDICATES THE WAY DEMAND
HAS COME TO A SCREECHING HALT
WITH OIL PRICES DOWN 27% JUST
THIS MORNING, DAVID.
TELL US HOW YOU CAN ASSESS WHERE
WE ARE ON THE GLOBAL ECONOMY
TODAY.
TODAY. >> I’M AFRAID THERE’S A DEEP
RECESSION, THAT’S PRETTY CLEAR.
IT HITS THE POOREST COUNTRIES
THE MOST.
THE MOST. SO THAT’S ONE OF THE THINGS I’VE
BEEN WORKING ON.
BUT AS WE THINK OF WHAT WOULD BE
THE BEST FOR THE DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES, THE POORER COUNTRIES,
IT WOULD BE A SHORT TIME TO
RECOVERY, TRYING TO SHORTEN THE
TIME TO RECOVERY FOR THE
ADVANCED ECONOMIES.
ADVANCED ECONOMIES. AND SO THAT’S A CRITICAL STEP,
GETTING PEOPLE BACK TO WORK,
BECAUSE WHAT’S HAPPENING RIGHT
NOW, 50 MILLION PEOPLE WILL FALL
INTO EXTREME POVERTY, EXTREME
POVERTY, WHICH MEANS THE REAL
THING WHERE THERE’S HIGHER
INFANT MORTALITY, WHERE THERE’S
STUNTING OF GROWTH RATES FOR
CHILDREN, AND THAT’S HAPPENING
RIGHT NOW BECAUSE OF THE SLOWER
GROWTH IN THE ADVANCED
COUNTRIES.
COUNTRIES. SO I THINK IT’S URGENT THAT WE
FIND A WAY TO SHORTEN THE TIME
TO GET GOING.
MARIA: IT’S UNBELIEVABLE.
BECAUSE GOING INTO THIS CRISIS
WE WERE ACTUALLY SEEING INCOME
INEQUALITY NARROW IN THE UNITED
STATES.
STATES. YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT THE WORLD’S
POOREST ACROSS THE WORLD AND
YOU’RE PUTTING THOSE PEOPLE ON
ALERT SAYING THAT THE GLOBAL
CORONAVIRUS RECESSION WILL HIT
THEM THE HARDEST.
SO DO YOU FEAR THAT THEY COULD
ACTUALLY MOVE BACKWARDS IN THIS
ENVIRONMENT?
ENVIRONMENT? THIS WILL PUT PEOPLE BACK SO
MUCH GROUND THAT THEY’VE
ACTUALLY MADE UP IN THE LAST
COUPLE OF YEARS, RIGHT?
>> THAT’S EXACTLY RIGHT.
WHAT WE’RE TRYING TO DO --
THERE’S DEFINITELY A
BACK-SLIDING IN TERMS OF
POVERTY, ALSO IN TERMS OF MEDIAN
INCOME.
INCOME. ONE OF THE GOALS OF THE WORLD
BANK IS TO HELP PEOPLE RAISE
THEIR MEDIAN INCOME AND THAT WAS
HAPPENING.
HAPPENING. THAT WAS HAPPENING SLOWLY BUT IT
WAS HAPPENING AND I THINK IT
WILL BACKSLIDE.
WILL BACKSLIDE. WHAT WE’RE DOING IS THE DEBT
RELIEF THAT YOU MENTIONED AT THE
TOP, WHICH IS -- IT’S VALUABLE.
IT SUPPLIES LOOKS LIKE
$14 BILLION OF CASH FLOW SAVINGS
IN THIS YEAR AND CHINA PUTS IN
QUITE A BIT OF THAT BECAUSE
THEY’RE 60% OF THAT CASH FLOW
AND SO WE NEED TO COMMEND THEM
FOR PARTICIPATING IN THE EFFORT.
WE HAD SPRING MEETINGS LAST WEEK
WHICH INCLUDED THE G-7, THE
G-20, THE IMF, THE WORLD BANK’S
DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE MEETING
AND EVERYONE’S ENGAGED IN THIS
EFFORT TO ALLOW THE MORATORIUM
ON THE DEBT REPAYMENT.
BUT THEN I THINK WE NEED TO ALSO
MOVE VERY QUICKLY ON THE HEALTH
EMERGENCY.
EMERGENCY. THE WORLD BANK HAS DONE 100
PROGRAMS NOW JUST SINCE
MID-MARCH AND SO THIS IS A BIG
ACHIEVEMENT.
ACHIEVEMENT. IT JOINS -- YOU KNOW, I LAUNCHED
THE DEBT RELIEF INITIATIVE ON
MARCH 23rd.
MARCH 23rd. SO PEOPLE MOVED FAST AND THAT’S
WHAT’S HAPPENING ON THESE HEALTH
EMERGENCY PROGRAMS AND WE ALSO
NEED IT ON SOCIAL SAFETY NET,
THAT’S THE MONEY THAT CAN GO
DIRECTLY TO POOR PEOPLE.
MARIA: WELL, YOU CERTAINLY HAVE
HAD GREAT SUCCESS WITH THIS,
HAVING LAUNCHED IT JUST A COUPLE
WEEKS AGO, DAVID SHALL
CONGRATULATIONS.
CONGRATULATIONS. ON FRIDAY THE WORLD BANK PLEDGED
NEARLY $133 MILLION IN PANDEMIC
BONDS WHICH WILL BE DISTRIBUTED
TO SOME OF THE POOREST NATIONS
IMPACTED BY THE CORONAVIRUS
PANDEMIC.
PANDEMIC. CRITICS ARE QUESTIONING WHETHER
THE FUNDING IS TOO LATE, WHAT
ELSE CAN BE DONE.
WE ARE NOW OBVIOUSLY NOW
KNEE-DEEP INTO IT AND PEOPLE ARE
FEELING IT RIGHT ON THE GROUND.
>> THAT’S RIGHT.
THAT WAS A PROGRAM SET UP IN
2016 AND 2017 WHERE THE PRIVATE
SECTOR IS PUTTING MONEY INTO A
TRUST FUND WHICH IS RUN BY THE
WORLD BANK.
WORLD BANK. THAT WAS TRIGGERED LAST WEEK.
SO THAT WILL HELP ADDRESS SOME
OF THE PANDEMIC CRISIS, BUT IT
WAS A COMPLICATED FINANCIAL
ENGINEERING.
ENGINEERING. SO WHAT WE’RE TRYING TO DO
GO-FORWARD IS HAVE MORE
STRAIGHTFORWARD FUNDING
STRAIGHTFORWARD FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES OR ACTIVITIES FOR
THE PANDEMIC AND FOR HEALTHCARE
AND ALSO FOR VACCINES.
I MET LAST WEEK WITH AN ALLIANCE
OF VACCINE PEOPLE INCLUDING
PRESIDENT MACRON FROM FRANCE AND
BILL GATES FOUNDATION WAS
INVOLVED AND OTHERS THAT CAN PUT
TOGETHER EFFORTS TO TRY TO GET A
VACCINE.
VACCINE. SO THERE’S ACTIVITY ON A BUNCH
OF FRONTS AND THE GOAL IS TO
HAVE FAST ACTION.
YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE PROBLEMS IN
MULTILATERALISM OR GLOBALISM IS
PEOPLE SPEND A LOT OF TIME IN
CONFERENCES AND DON’T GET ENOUGH
DONE ON THE GROUND.
SO WHAT WE’RE TRYING TO DO IN
THE WORLD BANK IS ALIGN, GET
PEOPLE CLOSE TO THE CLIENT.
THAT MEANS POOR COUNTRIES AND SO
WE’RE DOING A LOT OF OUR
ACTIVITY THROUGH COUNTRY
DIRECTORS AND THAT WORKS FASTER,
THAT MEANS THAT YOU’RE TAILORING
THE PROGRAM TO THE PEOPLE THAT
ACTUALLY NEED IT.
MARIA: THAT MAKES A LOT OF
SENSE, DAVID.
SENSE, DAVID. WE’LL BE WATCHING AND CERTAINLY
CHECKING IN ON YOUR
DEVELOPMENTS.
DEVELOPMENTS. DAVID, GOOD TO SEE YOU THIS
MORNING.
MORNING. THANKS SO MUCH.
>> GOOD TO SEE YOU, MARIA.
MARIA: DAVID MALPASS, THE