PM meets IMF mission chief over economic correction

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Thursday met with International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission Chief for Jordan Kristina Kostial and an accompanying delegation over the Kingdom's economic correction programme overseen by the fund, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

During the meeting, which was attended by Finance Minister Umayya Toukan, Ensour reviewed the positive economic indicators Jordan has achieved despite the difficult regional circumstances, especially the disruption of the Egyptian gas supplies to the Kingdom and the influx of Syrian refugees. 

For her part, Kostial commended the successes achieved in Jordan's economic reform plan and the GDP growth rate this year, which reached 3 per cent, according to Petra.

Kostial and her team are in Jordan for a fresh review of economic reforms.

The IMF executives have met with senior officials and lawmakers to discuss the Kingdom's economic and fiscal performance under a three-year Stand-By Arrangement (SBA).

Discussions also cover economic development and the government's policies for the remainder of the year and for 2015.

Finance Ministry Secretary General Ezeddin Kanakriyeh has told The Jordan Times that discussions are part of the fifth review of Jordan's performance under the SBA, adding that the review was expected to take 10 days.

On April 28, 2014, the executive board of the IMF completed the third and fourth reviews of Jordan’s performance under the SBA. 

The 36-month SBA (amounting to about $2 billion, or 800 per cent of Jordan’s quota at the IMF) was approved by the IMF’s executive board on August 3, 2012.

The completion of the third and fourth reviews enabled Jordan to benefit from the immediate release of about $264.7 million, bringing total disbursements under the programme to $1.3 billion.

Under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, the IMF holds bilateral discussions with members, usually every year. A staff team visits the country, collects economic and financial information, and discusses with officials the country’s economic developments and policies. On return to headquarters, the staff prepares a report, which forms the basis for discussion by the executive board.