Press Release No. 13/537

Press Release: IMF Executive Board Completes Fifth Review Under the SBA with Kosovo; Approves €4.8 Million Disbursement

December 20, 2013

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today completed the fifth and final review of the Republic of Kosovo’s economic performance under a program supported by a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA). The decision, which was taken on a lapse of time basis,¹ enables the authorities to draw an additional amount equivalent to SDR 4.25 million (about €4.8 million), bringing the total resources available to the Republic of Kosovo under the arrangement to SDR 90.968 million (about €102.2 million).

The authorities have indicated they will not purchase the amount made available by the completion of this review, in line with their intention to treat the SBA as precautionary in 2013.

All end-August 2013 and the continuous performance criteria were met. Good progress has also been made with respect to the applicable structural benchmarks.

The Executive Board approved a 20-month SBA for the Republic of Kosovo on April 27, 2012 (see Press Release No. 12/154) in an amount equivalent to SDR 90.968 million (about €102.2 million). Total disbursements so far amount to SDR 78.216 million (about €87.9 million). The arrangement expires on December 26, 2013.

¹The Executive Board takes decisions under its lapse-of-time procedure when it is agreed by the Board that a proposal can be considered without convening formal discussions.