Rome Newsroom, Jul 3, 2020 / 08:30 am
The Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in Geneva is urging countries to help relieve the "crippling external debt burdens" of developing countries struggling in the coronavirus pandemic.
"There is no doubt that the current COVID-19 crisis will more severely affect the lives and livelihoods of those in the developing world," Archbishop Ivan Jurkovič told the UN trade and development board July 2.
"The immediate challenge is to ensure that policymakers have the room and resources to respond to the health shock and to mitigate the accompanying economic damage. Whether and how this happens will have direct consequences for creating a fairer, more inclusive and resilient recovery," the archbishop said.
The Vatican diplomat noted that one avenue that could soften the pandemic's "potentially devastating impact" would be by "tackling the crippling external debt burdens accumulated, at both public and private levels, in developing countries over recent years."