The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced on Monday that it had reached an agreement in principle with the Ukrainian authorities on the country's economic policy, in particular the independence of the Central Bank of Ukraine, which could allow the release of 700 million dollars. aid.
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The agreement covers
"economic, financial and structural policies"
, which must be implemented
"to help cope with the economic and health crisis caused by the Covid-19"
, said the head of the team of the IMF, Ivanna Vladkova Hollar, in a statement. The program that Kiev will adopt must, among other things, ensure
"the safeguard of the independence of the central bank"
and
"the reduction of the role of the State and of special interests in the economy in order to improve the environment for business, ”
she said.
"The completion of this first review should allow the disbursement of SDR 500 million"
, special drawing rights, or SDR in English, which correspond to about 700 million dollars, the IMF said in its press release.
Approval expected for November
This agreement concludes months of discussions, after the resignation in July 2020 of the respected president of the Central Bank of Ukraine, who had denounced
"political pressure".
It is subject to the approval of the IMF's executive board, and a decision is expected in November.
The Council will also have to decide on Kiev's request to extend this aid program until June 2022.
Ukraine, one of the poorest countries in Europe, has already received $ 2.1 billion under an aid package, totaling $ 5 billion (4.4 billion dollars). billion euros), approved in June 2020 by the IMF Executive Board, and initially scheduled for 18 months.