KARACHI: Pakistan’s accumulated debt stock rose by 7.6 percent to $108.53 billion in 2020 from $100.83 billion a year before that, said a study conducted by the World Bank on Monday.
The global lending agency said its report, International Debt Statistics 2022, showed the debt vulnerabilities of low-income countries had significantly increased as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pakistan was among the top 10 countries that became eligible for debt relief under the Debt Services Suspension Initiatives announced by the G20 creditors after the emergence of the pandemic.
Data presented in a tabulated form in the report showed the overall rise in the country’s debt last year.
“Net inflows from other private creditors rose 15 percent in 2020 to $14 billion but were highly concentrated and also reflected rollovers and extension of new credits by commercial bank loans to Pakistan in the context of the IMF program,” the report added.
Pakistan’s debt stock was $63.09 billion in 2010 which rose to $93.5 billion by 2018, up by 48 percent while stock of debts rose by 16 percent between 2018 and 2020, according to the figures quoted in the World Bank report.
The external debt stock of low- and middle-income countries in 2020 rose, on average, by 5.6 percent to $8.7 trillion.
However, for many countries the increase was in double digits.
The external debt stock of countries eligible for the G-20 debt service initiative rose on average by 12 percent to $860 billion. In certain cases, the increase was even recorded at 20 percent or more.
For most countries, the rise in external indebtedness was not matched by the growth of gross national income (GNI) and exports, the report informed.
The external debt-to-GNI ratio of low- and middle-income countries’ rose to 42 percent in 2020 from 37 percent in 2019 while their debt-to-export ratio increased to 154 percent in 2020 from 126 percent in 2019.
Governments around the world responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with massive fiscal, monetary, and financial stimulus packages.
“While these measures were aimed at addressing the health emergency, cushioning the impact of the pandemic on the poor and vulnerable and putting countries on a path to recovery, the resulting debt burden of the world’s low-income countries rose 12 percent to a record $860 billion in 2020,” said a World Bank statement.
Even before the pandemic, many low- and middle-income countries were in a vulnerable position, undergoing a slowdown of economic growth and public and external debt at elevated levels.
Taken together, external debt stocks of low- and middle-income countries rose by 5.3 percent in 2020 to $8.7 trillion.
“We need a comprehensive approach to the debt problem, including debt reduction, swifter restructuring and improved transparency,” said David Malpass, the president of the World Bank Group in a statement, adding: “Sustainable debt levels are vital for economic recovery and poverty reduction.”
Overall, in 2020, net inflows from multilateral creditors to low- and middle-income countries rose to $117 billion, the highest level in a decade.
Net debt inflows of external public debt to low-income countries rose by 25 percent to $71 billion, also the highest level in a decade.
Multilateral creditors, including the International Monetary Fund, provided $42 billion in net inflows while bilateral creditors accounted for an additional $10 billion.
World Bank says Pakistan’s external debt stock rose to over $108 billion in 2020
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World Bank says Pakistan’s external debt stock rose to over $108 billion in 2020
- According to the bank’s International Debt Statistics 2022 report, Pakistan’s foreign debt has increased by 16 percent since 2018
- On average, the external debt stock of low- and middle-income countries rose by 5.6 percent to $8.7 trillion in 2020
Sindh assembly passes resolution rejecting move to separate Karachi
- Chief Minister Shah cites constitutional safeguards against altering provincial boundaries
- Calls to separate Karachi intensified amid governance concerns after a mall fire last month
ISLAMABAD: The provincial assembly of Pakistan’s southern Sindh province on Saturday passed a resolution rejecting any move to separate Karachi, declaring its territorial integrity “non-negotiable” amid political calls to carve the city out as a separate administrative unit.
The resolution comes after fresh demands by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and other voices to grant Karachi provincial or federal status following governance challenges highlighted by the deadly Gul Plaza fire earlier this year that killed 80 people.
Karachi, Pakistan’s largest and most densely populated city, is the country’s main commercial hub and contributes a significant share to the national economy.
Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah tabled the resolution in the assembly, condemning what he described as “divisive statements” about breaking up Sindh or detaching Karachi.
“The province that played a foundational role in the creation of Pakistan cannot allow the fragmentation of its own historic homeland,” Shah told lawmakers, adding that any attempt to divide Sindh or separate Karachi was contrary to the constitution and democratic norms.
Citing Article 239 of Pakistan’s 1973 Constitution, which requires the consent of not less than two-thirds of a provincial assembly to alter provincial boundaries, Shah said any such move could not proceed without the assembly’s approval.
“If any such move is attempted, it is this Assembly — by a two-thirds majority — that will decide,” he said.
The resolution reaffirmed that Karachi would “forever remain” an integral part of Sindh and directed the provincial government to forward the motion to the president, prime minister and parliamentary leadership for record.
Shah said the resolution was not aimed at anyone but referred to the shifting stance of MQM in the debate while warning that opposing the resolution would amount to supporting the division of Sindh.
The party has been a major political force in Karachi with a significant vote bank in the city and has frequently criticized Shah’s provincial administration over its governance of Pakistan’s largest metropolis.
Taha Ahmed Khan, a senior MQM leader, acknowledged that his party had “presented its demand openly on television channels with clear and logical arguments” to separate Karachi from Sindh.
“It is a purely constitutional debate,” he told Arab News by phone. “We are aware that the Pakistan Peoples Party, which rules the province, holds a two-thirds majority and that a new province cannot be created at this stage. But that does not mean new provinces can never be formed.”
Calls to alter Karachi’s status have periodically surfaced amid longstanding complaints over governance, infrastructure and administrative control in the megacity, though no formal proposal to redraw provincial boundaries has been introduced at the federal level.
