WHO, World Bank, IMF back debt relief for developing economies in pandemic - Tedros

GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Health Organization, World Bank and International Monetary Fund are calling for debt relief to help developing countries address the social and economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, the WHO chief said on Wednesday.

"Many countries, developing countries, cannot really support their societies especially during lockdowns, especially those community members who work for their daily bread. That is why we call on the international community to have debt relief to support those countries," WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual news conference in Geneva.

"We are proposing an expedited process to support countries so their economies are not getting into crisis, (and) their communities are not getting into crisis," Tedros said.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay)