Commodity Exporters Face Mounting Economic Challenges as Pandemic Spreads

Many commodity-dependent economies will likely face an economic crisis before they are hit by the coronavirus pandemic. Unlike most developed economies, commodity exporters saddled with large budget deficits and high levels of government debt will find it extremely difficult to roll out large fiscal stimulus. These economies are in a significantly tighter fiscal position now than they were during the global financial crisis, making it harder for them to borrow externally. Multilateral and concessional debt are increasingly critical financing options for many of these economies. The United Nations system entities can steer, facilitate and coordinate access to multilateral financing to help these economies scale up pandemic preparedness, minimize the risk of an economic crisis, and accelerate their sustainable development.