The bank said the region this year is projected to grow by only 0.9%, the lowest rate since 1967. The rest of the East Asia and Pacific region was projected to see a 3.5% contraction, the World Bank said. “These domestic difficulties were compounded by the pandemic-induced global recession, which hit EAP (East Asia and Pacific) economies that rely on trade and tourism hard,” it said. The bank said that 33 million people who would have in the absence of the pandemic escaped poverty would remain in it this year. “The region is confronted with an unprecedented set of challenges,” said Victoria Kwakwa, vice-president for East Asia and the Pacific at the World Bank.

Source: Dhaka Tribune September 29, 2020 02:37 UTC