Effectiveness of IMF Lending Programs
April 2025
For over 80 years, through seismic economic shocks andfinancial crises,the IMF has done what no other institution can: bring the world’s largest firehose—total lending capacity of about$1 trillion—to put out economic fires. The IMF steps in when our members need us most—providing emergency financing to immediately tackle economic shocks and prevent widespread instability.
IMF financing helps countries in three ways. First, it helps absorb shocks, enabling countries to meet immediate financial needs and cushion economic distress. Second, it catalyzes private-sector investments and additional financial support, signaling that underlying issues which led to the crisis can be resolved through reforms. Third, it promotes prudent macroeconomic policies that support financial stability and growth.
Since its founding in 1944, the IMF has provided vital financial assistance to countries around the world. This includes:
• Reconstructing the international payments system post-World War II
• Assisting newly independent African nations in the 1960s
• Supporting economies as they navigated the oil shocks in the 1970s
• Helping former Soviet Union nations transition to market-based economies
• Providing financial assistance to Mexico, Turkey, and key emerging market countries in Asia during the capital flow crises of the 1990s
• Catalyzing and providing multilateral debt relief to over 30 heavily indebted and low-income countries in the late 1990s/2000s
• Providing access to $540 billion to nearly 90 countries, particularly major economies in Europe, following the Global Financial Crisis
• Bringing timely financial support to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to fight the 2015 Ebola outbreak
• Providing around $400 billion in loans to almost 100 countries since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic
IMF Lending: Country Case Studies
Cyprus Cyprus approached the IMF for a three-year lending arrangement of about €1 billion with two goals: putting the banking sector on a sound footing and returning public finances to a sustainable path.
Iceland The IMF-supported program of $2.1 billion remains among the largest relative to the size of the economy—18 percent of Iceland’s GDP, or 1,190 percent of Iceland’s quota in the IMF.
Ireland In November 2010, the Irish government sought help from the IMF and the European Union, which together provided loans totaling €67.5 billion—equal to 40 percent of Ireland’s economy.
Jamaica Jamaica once again turned to the IMF in spring 2013 for financial support. Jamaica needed a second debt exchange and a primary surplus of 7.5 percent of GDP to help stabilize the economy and address long-standing structural challenges.
Portugal The agreement between Portugal and its international partners extended financial assistance worth €78 billion ($116 billion; £70 billion)—of which one-third was committed by the IMF. The deal was described by the country’s then caretaker prime minister as “a good agreement that defends Portugal.”
Serbia When the three-year precautionary Stand-By Arrangement was approved in 2015, Serbia’s economy faced large fiscal imbalances and protracted structural challenges.