Coronavirus: PM Imran wants international community to write off loans for Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The novel coronavirus may damage countries’ economies hence the international community should write off their loans, said Prime Minister Imran Khan in a recent interview to the Associated Press.

“My worry is poverty and hunger. The world community has to think of some sort of a debt write-off for countries like us, which are very vulnerable, at least that will help us in coping with [the coronavirus],” he said.

Saying categorically that “we just don’t have the resources”, the prime minister said that if the infection spreads further, the country will ultimately suffer as it will not have the proper health facilities in place to deal with the consequences.

“It’s not just Pakistan. I would imagine the same in India, in the subcontinent, in African countries. If it spreads, we will all have problems with our health facilities. We just don’t have that capability. We just don’t have the resources,” PM Imran was quoted by AP.

On Monday, the number of affected persons from the coronavirus in Pakistan jumped to 183, with more than 100 cases reported in Sindh. The federal government has been struggling to respond to the crisis and has been criticised by the provinces for lack of support to them.