Press Release: Statement on Discussions on Review of Turkey's Stand-By Arrangement

September 21, 2005


Hugh Bredenkamp, the IMF Senior Resident Representative in Turkey, issued the following statement on September 21, 2005 in Ankara:

"An IMF mission visiting Turkey for discussions on the authorities' economic program, which is supported under a three-year Stand-By Arrangement, left Ankara as planned on September 21.

"The mission, which was headed by Mr. Lorenzo Giorgianni, made progress on a range of key policy issues, including: the macroeconomic framework for 2006; plans for implementation of the pending pension reform; measures to strengthen collection of social security contributions; steps to improve tax administration; options for reform of the tax regime; the preparations for launching formal inflation targeting in January 2006; and plans for strengthening the institutional framework for bank supervision. The discussions will continue during the upcoming Annual Meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington, D.C. The authorities will continue their work in some of these areas, including the 2006 budget, and policy decisions will be needed before the program discussions can be concluded."





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