“Growth remains historically weak – now and over the medium term,” Georgieva said.
He said world growth for the next half-decade is expected to be around three per cent, the lowest medium-term forecast since the late 1990s.
Georgieva said low-income countries face a double whammy of higher borrowing costs and a drop in demand for their exports, which could lead to increased poverty and hunger.
“About 15 percent of low-income countries are already in debt crisis and an additional 45 percent are close to it,” he said, calling on richer IMF members to do more to provide support.