BUJUMBURA November 9th (ABP) – The Minister of Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, Domitien Ndihokubwayo, said Monday, November 8, during a press conference, that cooperation between Burundi and the monetary fund international (IMF) aims to support the initiatives taken by the government of Burundi in terms of recovery and macroeconomic stability, a check on the site by ABP has revealed.
Mr. Ndihokubwayo said that the Board of Directors of the International Monetary Fund approved on October 25, 2021 a rapid credit facility in favor of Burundi an amount of 76.2 million US dollars which is added to the envelope of $ 14.46 million granted to Burundi as part of debt relief in order to contribute to the release of budgetary space allowing the authorities to limit the socio-economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
He also noted that this facility is also in addition to another envelope of US $ 211.5 million for the leasing of special drawing rights approved by the IMF’s board of directors in favor of Burundi in August 2021.
The Minister in charge of Finance announced that those financial resources granted by the IMF will make it possible to improve the level of foreign exchange reserves on the one hand and to give more flexibility in the management of economic policy on the other hand, and support the government’s efforts in the response to the Covid-19 pandemic and its socio-economic implications at the same time as they contribute to the search for macroeconomic balances taking into account the plans and strategic orientations of the government in that area , the macroeconomic stability, development and economic growth. He pointed out that when it comes to the positive impact of these resources on the state budget and foreign exchange reserves, they support the implementation of monetary policy and change in particular by increasing the capacity of the central bank to ease the pressure on the exchange rate and the pursuit of the policy of financing strategic growth-promoting sectors through the easy acquisition of goods, production and equipment as well as raw materials to support production. He added that the disbursement of those resources by the IMF plays a catalytic role for other financial partners, foreign investors wishing to develop their economic activities in Burundi. By restoring the confidence of economic operators, those resources thus constitute a good opportunity to support the initiatives and efforts of the authorities to boost the transformation of the Burundian economy.