Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Sep 12, 2025

Coronavirus: World Bank unveils US$12 billion aid package to combat outbreak

Funds, some targeted at world’s poorest nations, can be used for medical equipment or health services. Virus concerns force IMF and World Bank to switch to virtual Spring Meetings

The World Bank unveiled a US$12 billion aid package on Tuesday that will provide fast-track funds to help countries combat the coronavirus outbreak.

“The goal is to provide fast, effective action that responds to country needs,” World Bank President David Malpass told reporters.

He said it is critical to “recognise the extra burden on poor countries” least equipped in the struggle to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

The funds, some of which are targeted to the world’s poorest nations, can be used for medical equipment or health services and will include expertise and policy advice, the bank said in a statement.

The virus that erupted in central China in December has killed more than 3,000 worldwide and infected over 90,000 people.

Malpass said the money – US$8 billion of which is new – will go to countries that request help. The bank has been in contact with many member nations, but he did not specify which are likely to be the first to receive aid.

“The point is to move fast. Speed is needed to save lives,” he said in a conference call.

“We want to make the best use of the World Bank’s extensive resources and global expertise and the historical knowledge of crises,” he said, citing similar crisis funding to combat the Ebola and Zika outbreaks in recent years.

Meanwhile, citing concerns about the fast spread of the coronavirus, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday said they will adopt a “virtual format” for their Spring Meetings instead of convening in person in Washington.

The institutions’ Spring Meetings, scheduled this year for April 17-19, usually bring some 10,000 government officials, businesspeople, civil society representatives and journalists from across the globe to a tightly packed, two-block area of downtown Washington that houses their headquarters.

The institutions began considering the move, first reported by Reuters last week, as the disease continued to spread rapidly around the world.

The coronavirus outbreak is plunging the world economy into its worst downturn since the global financial crisis more than 10 years ago, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development warned on Monday.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and World Bank President David Malpass said in a joint statement that their goal was to serve their membership effectively while ensuring the health and safety of participants and staff.

They said the institutions would leverage IT-related and virtual connection capabilities to hold essential policy consultations, while continuing to share IMF and World Bank analyses.

“With this adapted format, we are confident that our member countries will be able to effectively engage on pressing global economic issues at these Spring Meetings,” they said.

An IMF official said that one possible exception to the virtual meetings shift is that the 24-member International Monetary and Financial Committee – the Fund’s steering committee – may still meet face to face.

Details for the meeting are still being worked out, the official said. The equivalent panel at the World Bank, the Development Committee, is planning to meet in a virtual format, a World Bank spokesman said.

The rapid spread of the virus raised concerns inside the IMF and the World Bank that the close interactions among people from their 189 member countries at the Spring Meetings could inadvertently contribute to the problem.

After the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington, the IMF and World Bank cancelled their annual meetings scheduled for later that month in the US capital. The meetings were reconvened in November 2001 in Ottawa, Canada.

The by-laws of both institutions state that their annual meetings of boards of governors, normally held in the fall, must be held in person.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
×