WASHINGTON
\nThe International Monetary Fund has announced to extend its flexible access to emergency funding for an additional 18 months to help nations severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
\nAccording to a press statement, the IMF\u2019s Executive Board approved 18-month extensions (through end-June 2023) of the temporary increases to the cumulative access limits under its emergency financing instruments, i.e., the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) regular window, the Rapid Credit Facility (RCF) Exogenous Shock window, and the RFI\u2019s and RCF\u2019s Large Natural Disaster (LND) windows and allowed all other access limits that had been temporarily increased to return to their pre-pandemic levels from January 1, 2022 as scheduled.
\nThis decision reflects the expected and ongoing gradual shift to upper-credit-tranche (UCT) quality arrangements from emergency financing triggered by urgent, pandemic-related balance of payment (BoP) needs. At the same time, the decision ensures continued access by member countries to the Fund\u2019s emergency financing, should urgent BoP needs arise when a UCT-quality arrangement is either not necessary or not feasible, said the statement.
\nThe temporary increases in access limits for the RFI regular window and the RCF Exogenous Shock window were first introduced in April 2020 and extended in September 2020, and again in March 2021. For the RFI\u2019s and RCF\u2019s LND windows, the temporary increases were introduced in June 2021.
\nThe Executive Board reinstated the limit on the number of disbursements under the RCF within a 12-month period and endorsed staff\u2019s proposal to prepare an exit strategy from the temporary increase in cumulative access limits under emergency financing instruments by end-June 2023.
\nIn April 2020, as the world faced the first wave of coronavirus infections and deaths, the IMF eased access to such aid, including raising the level of funding that countries could obtain. The programmes have already been extended twice, in September 2020 and again last March.
\nThe board also agreed that \u201call other access limits\u201d which had been temporarily increased will be reduced to their pre-pandemic levels beginning January 1, 2022 as scheduled. \u201cThis decision reflects the expected and ongoing gradual shift to upper-credit-tranche quality arrangements from emergency financing triggered by urgent, pandemic-related balance of payment needs,\u201d the IMF said.
\nIt also stressed that the decision ensures \u201ccontinued access\u201d by member countries to the IMF\u2019s emergency financing should urgent balance of payment issues arise.
\nThe tools include the Rapid Credit Facility, an interest-free program available to low-income nations, and the Rapid Financing Instrument, which is available to all Fund members. The grants can be disbursed very quickly, to help member states implement policies to address emergencies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON The International Monetary Fund has announced to extend its flexible access to emergency funding for an additional 18 months to help nations severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. According to a press statement, the IMF\u2019s Executive Board approved 18-month extensions (through end-June 2023) of the temporary increases to the cumulative access limits under its […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-234891","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-business"},"yoast_head":"\n