The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is ready to move quickly on a \u200bcredit programme for Malawi, the lender said on \u200cMonday, but warned it will depend on the country’s willingness to implement economic reforms.<\/p>\n
IMF Resident Representative Nelnan Koumtingue said \u200bdiscussions were focused on policies outlined in Malawi’s \u200bNational Economic Recovery Plan and how the \u2060fund could support them with an extended \u200bcredit facility arrangement.<\/p>\n
The comments came after an IMF mission \u200bleft Malawi on June 18 without a deal.
\n“The process is evolving,” Koumtingue told Reuters.<\/p>\n
Williams Banda, a Spokesperson for Finance \u200bMinister Joseph Mwanamvekha, confirmed the talks were \u200bongoing, saying the government and IMF had “agreed on the pathway” \u200cbut \u2060declined to give further details.<\/p>\n
The National Economic Recovery Plan, tabled by Mwanamvekha earlier this month, outlines a five-year roadmap to stabilise Malawi’s economy, addressing \u200bdebt pressures, fiscal \u200breform, corruption \u2060and social protection during the restructuring period.<\/p>\n
Malawi’s last IMF programme, worth $175 million, lapsed \u200bin May last year because the country did \u200bnot \u2060complete a review within 18 months of its approval, meaning it received only an initial disbursement of $35 \u2060million. \u200bThe Southern African nation’s economic \u200bdifficulties include a high debt burden and declining donor funding.<\/p>\n
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