The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Tuesday it has discussed various options with Senegal to address the country’s “significant debt vulnerabilities,” adding a decision on whether to overhaul the debt rests with the government.
The IMF froze a $1.8 billion financial support package for the West African economy last year after a then new government disclosed hidden debts that are now estimated at more than $11 billion.
Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko said over the weekend Fund officials were pushing for a restructuring of Senegal’s debt, a move he said the government would not accept, which sent the country’s international bonds sharply lower on Monday.
A discussion of the policy choices that Senegal faces, during a staff mission to Dakar that ended last week, was part of the IMF’s role to offer expert analysis and advice for government consideration, a Fund Spokesperson told Reuters.
“The choice and specific nature of debt operations, and whether to seek to restructure debt obligations, remains a sovereign decision,” the Spokesperson said.
–Reuters–
