(Ecofin Agency) - Congolese authorities are stepping up measures to get their country back on track. The economy was in recession since 2015 and suffered another setback in 2020 with the Covid-19 pandemic. Under the recovery strategy, the government has signed a reform agreement with the IMF.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced it has just approved $455 million in financing for the Republic of Congo.

The financing is part of a 3-year extended credit facility (ECF) agreement signed with the country. It aims to help the country maintain macroeconomic stability while supporting post-Covid-19 economic recovery, and reduce debt vulnerabilities while accelerating social spending and infrastructure investments. IMF hopes this will catalyze financial support from other partners in the country.

Congo’s GDP shrunk by 8.2% in 2020, after a -0.4% recession a year before. Thanks to recovery efforts by the government, the economy only contracted by 0.2% in 2021. For this year, IMF expects it to rebound at 2.3%. “The Republic of Congo’s economy is expected to strengthen in the second half of the year, supported by vaccine rollout, social spending, and domestic arrears payments,” IMF Deputy MD Kenji Okamura explained, warning however that “the nascent recovery is facing significant risks, including a possible worsening of the pandemic, continued volatility in oil prices and production, climate change shocks, and weaker-than-expected reform implementation.”

 “The authorities’ program, supported by a new three-year Extended Credit Facility arrangement, aims to maintain macroeconomic stability during the recovery, reduce fragilities, and put the country on a medium-term path to higher, more resilient, and inclusive growth. The arrangement is also expected to catalyze development partner support,” he added.

The validation of this new ECF arrangement by the IMF Executive Board will enable an immediate disbursement of $90 million for Congo.

Moutiou Adjibi Nourou