Finance minister: Belarus refuses from cooperation with IMF
Belarusian Finance Minister Maksim Yermalovich. Photo: STV
Belarus has refused from a program of cooperation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Belarusian Finance Minister Maksim Yermalovich said in an interview with the Minsk TV channel STV. The interview was aired on the evening of 9 September.
Yermalovich explained that IMF's task is to assist countries at a time of crisis and support with financial resources the programs of structural reforms that create crisis situations. IMF allocates money to states in order to minimize the risks associated with structural reforms.
The Minister said the goverment in Minsk had developed along with IMF experts a program of structural reforms. "In principle, we were on the same page [with IMF] on the key points of this reform. We agreed on the program but our views differed on the timeline for its implementation. IMF insisted on a much more tighter schedule. The head of state pointed out that it would be a painful shock for our population and instructed us not to go for it. Hence, the government refused from the program of cooperation with IMF," Yermalovich explained.
The government is now working to meet the targets set in the social and economic development program approved by the All-Belarusian People's Congress.
