The International Monetary Fund has announced an important milestone in granting substantial debt relief to Liberia.
The fund's managing director, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, said in a statement released in Washington, DC, yesterday that enough pledges of finance had been received from IMF member countries to enable the fund to give relief.
Once pledges were "formalized", arrears could be cleared and new funds provided. Liberia would be able to benefit from the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, he said.
Strauss-Kahn said Liberia had established "an encouraging track record of macroeconomic management and reforms" in spite of difficulties in recovering from its civil war.
"IMF staff are currently finalizing discussions with the Liberian authorities on a three-year, IMF-supported program, so that Liberia can build upon the initial economic recovery, maintain the strong growth needed to reduce poverty, and restore debt sustainability," he concluded.
