Covid pandemic could fuel fresh interest in diaspora bonds: World Bank

World Bank officials warned that developing economies could suffer close to 3% decline in economic output

The coronavirus pandemic and its devastating economic impact on developing countries could fuel fresh interest in so-called diaspora bonds that allow migrants to support their countries of origin, experts from the World Bank and other groups say.

Dilip Ratha, the World Bank's lead economist on migration and remittances, told Reuters that diaspora bonds could generate about $50 billion a year in total for developing countries, potentially helping to offset a sharp drop in foreign direct investment that is slated to fall by 37 per cent this year.

However, such claims have met with scepticism in some quarters, given the plight