Press Release: IMF Working with Tajik Authorities Towards Program Under Policy Support Instrument

November 10, 2006

Press Release No. 06/249

Mr. Luc Moers, the Resident Representative of the International Monetary Fund in Tajikistan, issued the following statement today in Dushanbe:

"The IMF mission that left Dushanbe after a two-week visit on November 3 conducted the so-called Article IV consultation discussions, which cover medium-term economic prospects, and explored options for the continuation of IMF engagement with Tajikistan. The President of Tajikistan confirmed the authorities' choice to work towards a program under the Policy Support Instrument (PSI) instead of the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) in a meeting with the IMF mission on November 1. The PSI is a new IMF instrument, introduced in October 2005, to support low-income countries that do not want—or need—IMF financial assistance. Aside from the absence of IMF financial assistance, policy conditions under the PSI are similar to those under the PRGF. The PSI helps countries design effective economic programs that, once approved by the IMF's Executive Board, signal to donors, multilateral development banks, and markets the IMF's endorsement of a member's policies. The PSI is available upon request to all PRGF-eligible countries with a Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) in place.

"Tajikistan currently has no IMF program. Its second PRGF, which involved IMF lending of SDR 65 million, expired in February 2006. After the IMF's Executive Board approved debt relief for Tajikistan under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI) in January 2006, on all debt incurred before January 1, 2005 (SDR 69 million), currently outstanding debt of Tajikistan to the IMF is SDR 29.40 million."

More information on the relations between Tajikistan and the IMF can be found on the new website of the IMF's Resident Representative Office in Tajikistan: www.imf.org/external/country/tjk/rr

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