Jorgelina do Rosario and Rachel Savage
WASHINGTON/JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Delays in Ethiopia’s debt restructuring ‘disappointing’ due to failure of new global mechanism to address debt problems in East Africa The country’s finance minister said Saturday, adding that he planned to raise the issue with the head of the International Monetary Fund later in the day.
The second most populous country in Africa requested that under the Group’s common framework process early, but due in November 2020 and delayed progress with creditors on debt issues.
Ethiopian State Finance Minister Eyob Tekalign Tolina admits war is a key factor in delays He said in an interview with Reuters on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank annual meeting in Washington that he hopes ” Peace talks can take place in the coming weeks.
The conflict pits the Ethiopian federal government against regional forces led by a political party that once dominated national politics. Thousands of civilians were killed and millions were uprooted by violence.
“It’s stuck, which is a complete disappointment,” Eyob said of the Common Framework. “We trust the fund, we trust the G 20 country.”
Ethiopia’s bilateral creditor is co-chaired by France and the largest creditor, China – Eyob said it was represented by the Export-Import Bank of China – re-commitment to provide debt relief in August, but further progress requires an IMF agreement.
France and China “have done a commendable job in navigating this difficult journey,” Eyob said.
He said Ethiopia was asking for “special access” to IMF funds exceeding 100% of its quota, but declined to say exactly How much.
“I think the (IMF) board will see that the government has done everything in its power to resolve this conflict peacefully,” he said. “As you know, we’ve been calling for the AU process, the AU-led peace talks, which are now moving forward.”
The peace talks were supposed to be the first formal negotiations between the two sides diplomatic news It was originally scheduled to take place over the weekend, but was delayed due to logistical reasons, the people said. There is no danger of defaulting on debt.
He declined to specify how much debt relief the country needs, saying the IMF still needs to complete the debt sustainability analysis, which forms the basis of the debt sustainability analysis. debt reorganization.
Eyob said he expected the DSA to be completed in November.
The IMF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Ethiopian government plans to finish this year on how its banking sector will be liberalized, Eyob said, adding that about a dozen European and African banks have expressed interest.
He said that for the year to July 2022, GDP growth was “more than 6%”, while 2022 forecast at 9.2 percent, Eyob said.
The East African country has chronically experienced a shortage of foreign exchange, and the IMF predicts its foreign reserves will be imported from 2021 1.5 months Coverage fell to 0.7 this year.
Bill was trading on the black market for 90 to $1 this week, compared to 53 in the bank.
“We have made it very clear that we are going to reform our foreign exchange system,” Eyob said. “As such, a unified exchange rate remains an important policy objective, but we are only gradually achieving it.”
