## IMF Reaches Staff-Level Agreement on the Fifth Review under Ecuador’s Extended Fund Facility Arrangement

_IMF News, March 31, 2026_

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**Canonical URL:** [IMF Reaches Staff-Level Agreement on the Fifth Review under Ecuador’s Extended Fund Facility Arrangement](https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2026/03/31/pr-26099-ecuador-imf-reaches-agreement-on-5th-rev-under-ecuador-eff-arrang)

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## Bibliographic details
- Published: March 31, 2026

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### Mission and procedural status
- IMF team led by Patrizia Tumbarello held discussions with Ecuadorian authorities in Quito during February 26–March 6, 2026 and in Washington, DC during March 16-27, 2026.
- Staff-level agreement reached on the Fifth Review under the country’s 48-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) Arrangement.
- IMF Executive Board consideration expected in the coming weeks.
- Subject to Board approval and confirmation of international partners’ financial commitments, Ecuador would have immediate access to about US$394 million (SDR 280.5 million).

### Macroeconomic performance and external positions
- Real GDP rebounded strongly in 2025, driven by a recovery in domestic demand and buoyant nonoil exports.
- Liquidity in the financial system continues to facilitate credit growth.
- The current account balance continues recording sizable surpluses.
- International reserves have recorded a sustained rise to a historic high.
- The recent rise in global oil prices is expected to further improve the fiscal and external positions amid an uncertain and challenging external environment.

### Fiscal outcomes, financing, and market access
- Ecuador successfully returned to international capital markets in January 2026 for the first time since 2019, with a bond issuance of US$4 billion (including a debt buy-back operation of US$3 billion).
- Government deposits have improved, helping mitigate financing and liquidity risks.
- The authorities have taken actions to return to the program’s fiscal consolidation path after fiscal underperformance in late 2025.

### Program implementation, reforms, and structural benchmarks
- Authorities continue implementing their economic reform plan supported by the EFF arrangement and remain strongly committed to program objectives and policies.
- Measures enacted to:
  - streamline tax expenditures,
  - strengthen fiscal revenue, and
  - enhance public expenditure efficiency.
- These measures aim to correct the fiscal underperformance of late 2025 and return to the program’s fiscal consolidation path while increasing space for priority social and investment spending.
- Two key structural benchmarks have been met:
  - the mining sector’s fiscal regime, and
  - the Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism framework.
- Authorities continue advancing structural reforms to:
  - safeguard financial stability,
  - enhance governance, and
  - boost private investment and job-rich growth.

### Policy implications and outlook
- The authorities remain committed to continuing implementation of the reform agenda to:
  - strengthen fiscal sustainability,
  - boost private investment and job-rich growth,
  - safeguard dollarization,
  - strengthen macroeconomic and financial stability, and
  - protect vulnerable groups while promoting stronger and more inclusive economic growth.
- The program has catalyzed additional financial support from multilateral partners.

*International Monetary Fund press release No. 26/099, March 31, 2026.*

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## References

- [Ecuador and the IMF](http://www.imf.org/external/country/ECU/index.htm)
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- [PRESS CENTER](http://presscenter.imf.org/)
- [https://www.imf.org/en/home](https://www.imf.org/en/home)

_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2026/03/31/pr-26099-ecuador-imf-reaches-agreement-on-5th-rev-under-ecuador-eff-arrang_