Giving Compass' Take:

• Ceyla Pazarbasioglu and M. Ayhan Kose urge policymakers to think on a massive scale in order to equitably mitigate damage from COVID-19.

• How can we emphasize working to mitigate damage from COVID-19 in developing economies? Why is this essential in fending off the pandemic? What are you doing to support those feeling the brunt of the impact across the world?

• Learn more about why the world needs your giving more than ever to mitigate damage from COVID-19.

In addition to its incalculable health and human toll, the pandemic has already left an indelible mark on the global economy. Despite the overwhelming fiscal and monetary policy support, this year the pandemic is expected to trigger the deepest global recession since World War II, with global GDP contracting by 5.2 percent, as reported in our latest Global Economic Prospects report.

For emerging market and developing economies, the pandemic constitutes a perfect storm as their vulnerabilities are magnified by multiple shocks: In addition to the extraordinary burden on their weak health care systems, many of these economies have to cope with plunging export revenues, including from tourism; a substantial decline in demand for commodities; and a sharp fall in remittances.

Against the backdrop of this grim outlook, policymakers need to employ measures that will reduce the short-term pain while promoting long-term growth prospects.

First, they need to address the immediate health crisis and economic distress. This means that they need to be bold, timely, and comprehensive in their responses to overcome the health crisis and mitigate the short-term economic damage.

To preempt missteps during the recovery, measures taken now need to improve transparency in all areas to instill confidence, accelerate debt resolution and bankruptcy proceedings to allow corporate sectors to emerge promptly from the recession, and establish robust policy frameworks to assure investors of a return to fiscal sustainability.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a health crisis of a magnitude with no parallel in modern times. It has already turned into a massive economic crisis. History is watching how policymakers are addressing the unprecedented challenges brought by the pandemic. Their response will determine how the history of this calamity is written.

Read the full article about how policymakers can mitigate damage from COVID-19 by Ceyla Pazarbasioglu and M. Ayhan Kose at Brookings.