IMF Staff Completes Mission for a Staff-Monitored Program to Zimbabwe

IMF News, April 10, 2019

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Canonical URL: IMF Staff Completes Mission for a Staff-Monitored Program to Zimbabwe

Press Release No. 19/110; dated April 10, 2019.
A team from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), led by Mr. Gene Leon, visited Harare, April 1-5, 2019 to continue discussions on a Staff Monitored Program (SMP).
End-of-Mission press releases convey preliminary findings after a visit to a country. The views expressed are those of the IMF staff and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF’s Executive Board.
This mission will not result in a Board discussion.
“IMF staff and the Zimbabwean authorities have reached agreement on macroeconomic policies and structural reforms that can underpin a Staff Monitored Program.”

Zimbabwe is facing deep macroeconomic imbalances, with large fiscal deficits and significant distortions in foreign exchange and other markets, which severely hamper the functioning of the economy.
The country is also facing the challenge of responding to the adverse effects on agriculture and food security of the el Nino-related drought, as well as the devastation from Cyclone Idai.
The IMF staff team met with Finance Minister Ncube, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Mangudya, other senior government and RBZ officials, and non-government representatives.

The SMP aims to implement a coherent set of policies that can facilitate a return to macroeconomic stability.
The SMP will be monitored on a quarterly basis.
The policy agenda to be monitored under the SMP is anchored on the authorities’ Transitional Stabilization Program and emphasizes:
- fiscal consolidation,
- the elimination of central bank financing of the fiscal deficit,
- adoption of reforms that allow market forces to drive the effective functioning of foreign exchange and other financial markets.
Agreed policies—both macroeconomic and structural—are expected to:
- remove critical distortions that have held back private sector growth,
- improve governance.
The SMP also includes important safeguards to protect the country’s most vulnerable people.

Successful implementation of the SMP will assist in building a track record and facilitate Zimbabwe’s reengagement with the international community.
“This staff-level agreement is subject to review by the IMF’s management.”

IMF Staff Completes Mission for a Staff-Monitored Program to Zimbabwe, Press Release No. 19/110 (April 10, 2019).