(4 minute read)
- IMF staff and the authorities have reached a staff-level agreement on the first review under the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s three-year arrangement under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF).
- The IMF team advocated for an increase in public investment and social spending in the DRC. It also advised DRC officials to continue efforts to increase revenue, reduce non-priority spending, and ensure the effective and transparent use of public funds, including SDR allocation.
- Other IMF suggestions were to remain committed to reserve accumulation to guard against external shocks, improve business confidence, and ensure greater transparency, including in the mining sector.
IMF staff and the authorities have reached a staff-level agreement on the first review under the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s three-year arrangement under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF). The IMF team advocated for an increase in public investment and social spending in the DRC. It also advised DRC officials to continue efforts to increase revenue, reduce non-priority spending, and ensure the effective and transparent use of public funds, including SDR allocation. The other IMF suggestion was to remain committed to reserve accumulation to guard against external shocks, improve business confidence, and ensure greater transparency, including in the mining sector.
An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team held discussions and virtual meetings with the authorities in Kinshasa between October 20 and 27. This was the first review under the three-year arrangement under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF).
Following the review meeting, it was announced that the authorities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the IMF team had reached a staff-level agreement on the completion of the first review under the ECF arrangement. This agreement is subject to the usual procedures.
The IMF team assessed that, despite the persistence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the DRC’s economy is in a recovery phase. Growth for 2021-2022 has been revised upward to 5.4% and 6.2%, respectively, supported by higher-than-expected mining output and a recovery in non-extractive growth. Inflation remained around 5%. A better-than-expected external environment, supported by high commodity prices, enabled a significant increase in gross international reserves, which reached US$3.3 billion in mid-October 2021, compared to US$0.8 billion at the end of 2020. This is due to more proactive foreign exchange purchases by the central bank and the late August general SDR allocation.
The draft 2022 budget was also discussed with IMF officials. The IMF team assessed that the budget should provide for an increase in public investment. This should be partly financed by the partial use of the SDR allocation. It also called for better governance and transparent structures.