## Press Release: IMF Executive Board Approves Successor Two-Year US$ 5.84 billion Flexible Credit Line for Colombia

_IMF News, June 24, 2013_

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Press Release: IMF Executive Board Approves Successor Two-Year US$ 5.84 billion Flexible Credit Line for Colombia](https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2015/09/14/01/49/pr13229)

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## Bibliographic details
- Published: June 24, 2013

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### Approval and arrangement details
- Press Release No.13/229; June 24, 2013.
- The Executive Board approved a new two-year arrangement for Colombia under the Flexible Credit Line (FCL) in an amount equivalent to SDR 3.87 billion (about US$5.84 billion).
- The Colombian authorities indicated that they intend to treat the new arrangement as precautionary and do not intend to draw on the line.
- Colombia’s first FCL was approved on May 11, 2009; successor arrangements were approved on May 7, 2010 and May 6, 2011.

### Key findings and assessment from the IMF statement
- Colombia has very strong policy frameworks, comprising:
  - an inflation-targeting regime,
  - a flexible exchange rate,
  - effective financial sector supervision and regulation,
  - a fiscal policy guided by a structural balance rule for the central government.
- The authorities have a sustained track record of implementation of very strong policies, which have underpinned strong economic performance in recent years.
- Authorities are committed to maintaining these policies and to undertaking further initiatives—including the recently-approved tax reform—to:
  - bolster growth,
  - reduce inequality,
  - further increase economic resilience.
- Macroeconomic performance and resilience:
  - Colombia’s macroeconomic policies provided resilience to the global financial crisis and supported a strong recovery and gradual rebuilding of policy buffers.
  - The exchange rate has played a key shock-absorbing role.
  - The financial system has remained stable.
  - The authorities have taken advantage of strong capital inflows to partially rebuild their international reserve position.
- Risks and role of the FCL:
  - Risks to the global economic outlook remain elevated, and if they materialized, they would affect Colombia’s economy and external accounts.
  - Access to the Fund’s FCL instruments will continue to play an important role in supporting the authorities’ macroeconomic strategy if that were to happen.
  - A successor arrangement treated as precautionary will help Colombia to effectively manage potential shocks and sustain strong economic performance, while the authorities continue strengthening their policy framework and rebuilding policy buffers.

### Background on the Flexible Credit Line (FCL)
- The FCL was established on March 24, 2009 and further enhanced on August 30, 2010.
- The FCL is available to countries with very strong fundamentals, policies, and track records of policy implementation and is particularly useful for crisis prevention purposes.
- FCL arrangements are approved for countries meeting pre-set qualification criteria.
- The FCL is a renewable credit line, which could be approved for either one or two years.
  - Two-year arrangements involve a review of eligibility after the first year.
- If the country draws on the credit line, the repayment period is between three and five years.
- There is no cap on access to Fund resources under the FCL; access is determined on a case-by-case basis.
- Qualified countries have the full amount available up-front, with no ongoing conditions.
- There is flexibility to either draw on the credit line at the time it is approved, or treat it as precautionary.

### Contact and media information
- IMF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT, Media Relations
- E-mail: media@imf.org
- Phone: 202-623-7100

*Press Release No.13/229; June 24, 2013 — International Monetary Fund*

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## References

- [Colombia and the IMF](http://www.imf.org/external/country/COL/index.htm)
- [Press Releases](https://www.imf.org/en/news/searchnews)
- [PRESS CENTER](http://presscenter.imf.org/)
- [see Press Release No. 09/161](https://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2009/pr09161.htm)
- [Press Release No. 10/186](https://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2010/pr10186.htm)
- [Press Release No. 11/165](https://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2011/pr11165.htm)
- [Press Release No. 09/85](https://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2009/pr0985.htm)
- [10/321](https://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2010/pr10321.htm)
- [https://www.imf.org/en/home](https://www.imf.org/en/home)

_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2015/09/14/01/49/pr13229_