ADDIS ABABA (KAAB TV) – The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday approved the second review of Ethiopia’s current financing program which paves the way for disbursement of up to 250 million dollars.
Ethiopia, last July agreed to a $3.4 billion bailout after overhauling its currency, to enable it to try to recover and arrange the loan.
“The authorities are continuing their efforts to restore the continuity of the debt and are taking steps to ensure the treatment of the debt. Progress in debt restructuring under the Framework is welcome,” the IMF said in a statement. “The financial guarantees obtained, and the improvement efforts made, are in line with the IMF’s policy requirements and program parameters.”
Fund staff and the government agreed to a second review in late November.
The IMF has assessed that Ethiopia’s economy has fared better than expected in its reform programme, predicting that upward inflationary pressures will fail to materialize and hard currency reserves will run out faster. increase to the expected level. After an extraordinary review of Ethiopia’s program aimed at closely monitoring the impact of the changes, the IMF said in November it would switch to a regular six-month review schedule.
The IMF’s role in Ethiopia’s debt restructuring has met with criticism from many quarters, including World Bank staff, who questioned the Fund’s conclusions in an internal debt sustainability assessment last year.