The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved the immediate release of an amount equivalent to Special Drawing Right (SDR) 5 million, which is about US$7.6 million, for disbursement to Burundi.
An IMF statement obtained Tuesday by PANA in New York said the approval followed the
completion of the fifth review of Burundi’s economic performance under a three-year programme supported by the IMF’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement.
It said the development brought the total disbursements under the arrangement to an amount
equivalent to SDR 25 million (about US$38.1 million).
The statement noted that, in completing the fifth review, the Executive Board also approved the authorities’ requests for a modification of performance criteria and indicative targets for September-December 2014 for net foreign assets and net domestic assets of the central bank and net domestic financing of the government, as well as for gross fiscal revenue and reserve money.
The statement also recalled that the three-year ECF arrangement in the amount equivalent to SDR 30 million (about US$45.7 million) was approved by the Executive Board on 27 January, 2012.
Mr. Naoyuki Shinohara, IMF’s Deputy Managing Director and acting Board’s Chair, said: “Burundi has made satisfactory progress under the ECF-supported programme…economic
growth is expected to pick up to about 4.7 percent in 2014, while inflation has been declining aided by moderating international food and fuel prices and stable monetary conditions.
“However, the medium-term economic outlook remains difficult, with downside risks arising from political uncertainties ahead of the 2015 elections, vulnerabilities to external shocks given Burundi’s narrow export base, and the large influx of refugees.”
