Mogadishu Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire met with International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde on Tuesday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. after their meeting, Lagarde and Prime Minister Khayre discussed the IMF’s support for Somalia, especially through two Staff-Monitored Programs and extensive technical assistance Somalia is among the largest recipients of IMF technical assistance.
“The underlying economic conditions in Somalia remain difficult, but the authorities are making strong efforts to rebuild their country. Somalia’s debt relief is a priority for the IMF and every effort is being made to accelerate the process within established procedures.”
Lagarde reiterated the Fund’s continued active engagement with Somalia, including to reach the point that enables it to receive debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country initiative. She tweeted “I had a very constructive meeting with Somali PM Hassan Khaire in Davos today. Somalia’s debt relief is a priority for the IMF and every effort is being made to accelerate the process within established procedures.”
Khayre also tweeted “We exchanged views on the way forward for our country’s endeavor to get a debt relief. In May, the IMF reached an finalized agreement on its second staff-monitored programme with Somalia after discussions initiated at the London Conference on Somalia. Somalia’s latest fiscal budget is in line with the financial reforms the government committed to when it entered into the agreement.