LAHORE       -           The Pakistan Industrial and Traders Associations Front (PIAF) has said G20 countries’ short-term foreign debt relief will not benefit Pakistan in the long run to deal with the pandemic crisis. PIAF chairman Mian Nauman Kabir, in a joint statement with senior vice chairman Nasir Hameed Khan and vice chairman Javed Iqbal, stated that there was no benefit of G20 countries’ including Pakistan in a group of 72 countries, eligible for an interim debt relief on principal and interest payments, as the suspension period for debt relief will remain only for few months till Dec 1, 2020. Mian Nauman Kabir said that all debt service in this period will be packaged into a new loan on which the repayments will again start from July 2022, which will have to be paid over three years. While reiterating demand of abolishing the whole debt, he appealed the international community to write off the debts of vulnerable countries, including Pakistan, as the coronavirus may shatter the economies of developing countries. He said that the world community should think of full debt write-off for countries like Pakistan to help them coping with the coronavirus. He observed that Pakistan lacks fiscal space and a proper health system. Therefore, the most appropriate response writing off the loan instead of a temporary relief, he said.