The Gambia: First Review of the Staff-Monitored Program and Request for a 39-Month Arrangement under the Extended Credit Facility

IMF Staff Country Reports, April 13, 2020

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The Gambia: First Review of the Staff-Monitored Program and Request for a 39-Month Arrangement under the Extended Credit Facility

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Bibliographic details

• Published: April 13, 2020
• Series: IMF Staff Country Reports
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781513540351.002

Program objectives and context

• The paper presents The Gambia’s First Review of the Staff-Monitored Program and Request for a 39-Month Arrangement Under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF).
• The IMF-supported program aims to:
  • help The Gambia to be better prepared for external shocks,
  • pursue high and inclusive growth,
  • lessen debt vulnerabilities,
  • strengthen public financial management,
  • bolster domestic revenue mobilization.
• The ECF arrangement is described as essential to help the authorities deal with the challenges posed by the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
• Voluntary debt service deferrals from the authorities’ main external creditors have helped attain debt sustainability.

Assessment and findings

• The Gambian authorities’ commitment to prudent policies and institutional improvements has supported robust economic growth.
• The vulnerabilities identified in the 2019 Financial Sector Stability Assessment should be addressed to ensure soundness of the financial sector and improve legal and supervisory framework for banking supervision.
• The authorities should leverage the financial inclusion strategy, including through mobile banking, while strengthening the oversight of nonbanking institutions and monitoring of risks involved in mobile banking.
• The authorities should remain committed to fiscal consolidation in the medium-term to ensure debt sustainability.

Policy recommendations

• Maintain commitment to prudent fiscal policies and medium-term fiscal consolidation to preserve debt sustainability.
• Address vulnerabilities from the 2019 Financial Sector Stability Assessment to improve financial sector soundness and the legal and supervisory framework for banking supervision.
• Leverage the financial inclusion strategy (including mobile banking) while:
  • strengthening oversight of nonbanking institutions,
  • monitoring risks involved in mobile banking.

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