Press Release: IMF to Extend 100 Percent Debt Relief to Uganda Under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative

December 23, 2005


Mr. Peter Allum, the IMF Senior Resident Representative in Uganda, issued the following statement on December 22 in Kampala:

"Under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative, the IMF Executive Board has approved debt relief for Uganda (see Press Release No 05/286). As part of the Initiative, the IMF will provide 100 percent debt relief on all debt incurred by Uganda to the IMF before January 1, 2005 that remains outstanding. This amounts to approximately US$126 million, or US$109 million excluding remaining assistance under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative. This debt relief should become available in early January as soon as the remaining consents of the contributors to the PRGF Trust Subsidy Account have been received. The international community has made these additional resources available to help Uganda make progress toward its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

"Uganda has qualified for IMF debt relief because of its overall satisfactory recent macroeconomic performance, progress in poverty reduction, and improvements in public expenditure management. In particular, Uganda has enjoyed robust economic expansion with low rates of inflation for more than five years, the government has established a sound record of implementing the Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP), and it has improved public expenditure management systems. Performance in these areas provides assurance that resources made available under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative will be used effectively."

"The IMF looks forward to working with Uganda to help it develop a strong and stable economy and to make sustained progress toward the MDGs," he said.





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