The IMF’s Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva has said a fully-fledged support program for Ukraine is “weeks away.”
Brendan Smialowski | Afp | Getty Images
The IMF is weeks away from finalizing a fully-fledged program of support for Ukraine, the fund’s Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told CNBC Saturday.
This comes hours after the IMF said Friday that it had reached a staff-level agreement with Ukrainian authorities, paving the trail for talks on a full loan program that will support Kyiv’s economy and further its bid to hitch the European Union. The plan is now subject to approval from IMF management.
“Time shouldn’t be Ukraine’s friend in these extraordinary conditions of war,” Georgieva told CNBC’s Hadley Gamble on the Munich Security Conference.
“We discuss numerous weeks, not a really long time frame,” she added when pressed on the timeline to implement this system.
Georgieva said that the UN financial agency was confident that Ukraine meets its requirements around fiscal policy, governance, anti-corruption and financial sector stability.
“We have now a rustic where institutions work. Where pensions are paid. Where social services are in place. Where the federal government is keenly interested to proceed to reform, even when bombs are falling,” she noted.
This system comes at an important time for Ukraine, which approaches the primary anniversary of Russia’s invasion on Feb. 24. The IMF estimates that the country could require financial support in excess of $40 billion this 12 months, whilst Ukraine’s economy is forecast to return to growth after a 30% contraction in 2022.
“Ukraine does need the IMF at this very critical time,” Georgieva said. “Why? Because financial needs are significant: We put them somewhere between $40-48 billion for this 12 months.”
“And two, since the country does need the policy support that the IMF provides. To run a war economy shouldn’t be a trivial matter,” she added.
Accelerating Ukraine’s road to EU accession
In addition to supporting Ukraine’s economy amid the conflict, Georgieva said that the reforms would also help “speed up” Ukraine’s efforts to eventually join the EU.
The European Parliament adopted a resolution calling to instantly grant candidate status for EU membership to Ukraine on Jun. 23, 2022. The European Council gave the country candidate accession status to the EU on the identical day.
“We make the need of Ukraine to hitch the European Union a priority in our work,” Georgieva said Saturday.
“They belong there,” she added. “And the Fund, in fact, may also help them move faster on that road.”
