IMF Team Reaches Staff-Level Agreement on 2nd Review of SBA with Iraq

June 5, 2017

June 5, 2017

The Stand-By Arrangement aims to restore fiscal and external balance and to improve public financial management while protecting social spending.

  • The Iraqi authorities and the IMF mission have reached agreement on a supplementary budget for 2017, objectives for the 2018 budget, and strengthened procedures to keep expenditure under control
  • The SBA aims to restore fiscal and external balance and to improve public financial management while protecting social spending.

The Iraqi authorities and an International Monetary Fund (IMF) team reached a staff-level agreement on the second review of the Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) that was approved by the IMF Executive Board on July 7, 2016 (See Press Release No. 16/321). The SBA aims to restore fiscal and external balance and to improve public financial management while protecting social spending. Iraq completed the first review under the SBA on December 5, 2016 and received a disbursement of SDR 0.46 billion (US$0.6 billion) (See Press Release No. 16/540). Completion of the second review will release a further disbursement of SDR 0.6 billion (US$0.8 billion).

Mr. Christian Josz, Mission Chief for Iraq, issued the following statement today in Amman:

“The Iraqi authorities and the IMF team have reached agreement on a supplementary budget for 2017, objectives for the 2018 budget, and strengthened procedures to keep expenditure under control. Both the supplementary 2017 budget and the 2018 budget will keep the fiscal consolidation, necessitated by the fall in oil prices, on track, while protecting social spending.

“Once agreed prior actions have been implemented, the IMF Board could consider the second review of the SBA in August.

“During the discussions, the team met with Acting Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI), Dr. Ali Mohsen Ismail Al-Allaq, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Prime Minister, Dr. Naufel Al-Hassan, Chairman of the Board of Supreme Audit, Dr. Salah Noori Khalaf, Acting Deputy Finance Minister, Ms. Taif Same, Deputy Minister of Planning, Dr. Qasim Enaya, Deputy Minister of Electricity, Mr. Abdel Hamza, Financial Adviser to the Prime Minister, Dr. Mudher Saleh, and officials from the ministry of finance, Central Bank of Iraq (CBI), the Board of Supreme Audit, the ministry of oil, the ministry of planning, the ministry of electricity, and a representative from the Kurdistan Regional Government. The team would like to thank the Iraqi authorities for their cooperation and the open and productive discussions.”

IMF Communications Department
MEDIA RELATIONS

PRESS OFFICER: Wafa Amr

Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org