Our forecasts show that the Russian invasion in Ukraine has reversed the region's recovery from the pandemic," said Anna Bjerde, World Bank vice president for Europe and Central Asia. Grain exports and other economic activity have "become impossible in large swaths of the country due to heavy damage to infrastructure," Bjerde said. The bank's forecasts assumed the war would continue for a few more months, but cautioned that they "are subject to significant uncertainty." The proportion of the population living on $5.50 a day is expected to rise to 19.8 percent this year from just 1.8 percent in 2021, according to the World Bank. The region also has been impacted by the sanctions imposed on Russian ally Belarus for its role in the war.

Source: Manila Times April 11, 2022 20:15 UTC