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IMF sets $750m to Georgia

04 September 2008 10:33 (UTC +04:00)

Baku. Rauf GasÄ±mov â€“ APA-Economics. The International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday it has reached an agreement in principle with Georgia on a 750 million-dollar financial package. The proposed arrangement requires the approval of the IMF Executive Board, which is expected to consider Georgiaâ€™s request in mid-September, according to a statement released by the IMF. The loan would be provided through an 18-month Stand-By Arrangement. The arrangement is intended to support the economic policies of the Georgian authorities and to help mitigate the adverse economic and financial consequences of the recent conflict, said David Owen, head of the IMF mission team that visited Georgia to discuss the financing.
Georgiaâ€™s strong record of reform and sound macroeconomic policies has strengthened the resilience of the economy and bodes well for a solid recovery from this shock," the 185-nation institution said.
Eka Sharashidze, the Georgian economy minister, said on September 3 that the government had revised economic growth forecasts for 2008.
â€œBecause of the war, we expect economic growth to slow to 5-6% from our initial estimate of double-digit growth,â€ she told journalists.
Washington has already provided roughly 30 million dollars in emergency humanitarian aid to the former Soviet republic since the conflict, US officials say.
Russian bombing raids hit mainly military targets, but Georgia also reported considerable damage to civilian infrastructure.