Luanda - International Monetary Fund said on Monday its executive board approved a disbursement to Angola of about $487.5 million after completing a fourth review of the economic programme under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF).
With this amount, total disbursements under the SDR agreement amount to about USD 3 billion, said IMF on its official website.
Angola's extended three-year agreement was approved by the Executive Council on 7 December 2018, amounting to DES 2.673 billion (about $ 3.7 billion at the date of approval).
Its objective is to restore external and fiscal sustainability, improve governance and diversify the economy, in order to promote sustainable economic growth led by the private sector.
At the time of the third assessment, the Executive Council approved the request by the Angolan authorities to increase access to SDR 540 million (about US $ 765 million at the time of approval) to support efforts to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 and sustain the implementation of structural reform.
The Fund said that the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact Angola’s economy and population, while oil production and prices remain weak.
To IMF, the authorities "have maintained a robust political response in the face of these challenges and remain firmly committed to the program".
But it said that Angolan authorities “have maintained a robust policy response in the face of these challenges and remain resolutely committed to the programme,” noting the December passage of a 2021 budget that includes non-oil revenue gains and restraints on non-essential expenditures.
Angola last September secured a $765 million augmentation here of total access under the Extended Fund Facility programme, which was initially approved in December
“The stabilisation of public finances remains the cornerstone of the (Angolan) authorities’ strategy,” IMF Deputy Managing Director Antoinette Sayeh said in a statement.
“The authorities achieved strong fiscal adjustment in 2020. Their 2021 budget consolidates the non-oil revenue gains and expenditure restraint of the 2020 budget, while protecting priority health and social spending.”
