Marrakesh, Morocco | AFP | IMF chief Christine Lagarde warned Tuesday that “public dissatisfaction is bubbling up” in the Middle East and North Africa, calling for reforms that “respond faster to the expectations and sometimes to the frustration of the people”. Speaking at a conference in Morocco’s Marrakesh, the head of …
Read More »IMF invites Arab nations to tackle public ‘frustration’
Rabat, Morocco | AFP | The International Monetary Fund is holding a two-day regional conference from Monday in Morocco with a message of reform amid growing “frustration” among the population of some Arab states. “Rising social tensions and protests in several countries across the Middle East and North Africa are …
Read More »COMMENT: Meeting rising debt obligations
Uganda has favorable debt sustainability rating but current pressures could worsen its servicing position COMMENT | EZRA MUNYABONERA | During the past 10 years, Uganda has registered a consistent rise in the level of indebtedness. Public debt as a share of GDP has risen from 20 percent in 2006 to …
Read More »South Africa central bank chief to head IMF steering committee
Washington, United States | AFP | South Africa’s central bank chief Lesetja Kganyago will take over as chair of the International Monetary Fund’s policy advisory committee, the IMF announced Thursday. Kganyago, who has served as governor of the South African Reserve Bank since late 2014, takes on a three-year post …
Read More »Make reforms while sun shines on world economy: Lagarde
Paris, France | AFP | International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde has urged France and other countries to push through reforms “while the sun is shining” on the global economy. In an interview with France’s Le Journal du Dimanche published Sunday Lagarde said the strength of the global economic recovery …
Read More »IMF sounds alarm over Congo debt before possible bailout
Brazzaville, Congo | AFP | A team from the International Monetary Fund on Thursday wound up a mission to the Republic of Congo by expressing concern at debt and corruption before considering any bailout. “Congo’s economy continues to suffer from the effects of low oil prices, unsustainable debt, and significant governance …
Read More »US-world divide spills out at IMF-World Bank meetings
Washington, United States | AFP | The growing split between the United States and the rest of the world spilled into the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington this week. The US administration showed a diminished view of the Bretton Woods institutions that shaped …
Read More »IMF worried over Venezuela, ‘no solution in sight’
Washington, United States | AFP | The International Monetary Fund expressed grave concerns Friday over Venezuela’s unending political crisis, seeing no end to the economic downturn and suffering of the population. Venezuela “remains in a full-blown economic, humanitarian, and political crisis with no end in sight,” the Fund said in a …
Read More »Global economy chiefs told to reform while going is good
Washington, United States | AFP | Finance chiefs from around the world were warned Thursday to get their houses in order while the global economy is strong and to be ready for possible shocks in the future. World Bank President Jim Yong Kim and International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine …
Read More »Spend more on schooling to reduce inequality, IMF says
Washington, United States | AFP | Tackling disparities in education is crucial to reducing global income inequality, the International Monetary Fund said Wednesday, urging governments to spend more on schooling for disadvantaged children. In a report, the IMF said that over the past three decades, 53 percent of countries had become …
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