Flood-hit Pakistan should suspend debt repayments, says UN paper: Report

Pakistan should suspend international debt repayments and restructure loans with creditors after recent floods added to the country's financial crisis, the Financial Times reported on Friday, citing a UN policy memo.

The memorandum, which the UN Development Programme (UNDP) will share with Pakistan's government this week, states that the country's creditors should consider debt relief, so that policymakers can prioritise financing its disaster response over loan repayment, the newspaper said.

Pakistan has earlier estimated the damage at $30 billion, and both the government and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have blamed the flooding on climate change.

The memo further proposed debt restructuring or swaps, where creditors would let go of repayments, in exchange for Pakistan agreeing to invest in climate change-resilient infrastructure, FT said.

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