KIEV, March 5. /TASS/. Ukraine has signed a memorandum of co-operation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and expects next tranche in the second half of March, spokesman of the country’s Finance Ministry told TASS.
"I can confirm the signing," he said.
Ukraine’s Finance Minister Alexander Danilyuk wrote on his Facebook account on Saturday that the agreement on next tranche is "the result of implementation of the reform program developed with the IMF by Ukraine and joint efforts of the president, government and the National Bank."
On Sunday, the International Monetary Fund reported reaching a staff-level agreement with Ukraine on the third review of the arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). "The IMF staff has reached agreement with the Ukrainian authorities on an updated Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies. This paves the way for consideration of the third review of the arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) by the IMF’s Executive Board, together with the 2016 Article IV consultation, in the second half of March," Mission Chief for Ukraine at the International Monetary Fund, Ron van Rooden, was quoted as saying.
In March 2015, the IMF adopted a four-year loan program for Ukraine worth $17.5 billion. It replaced the previous program of 2014, which was not implemented. Under the new arrangement Kiev received an initial $5 bln tranche, and later $1.7 bln and $1 bln. The latest tranche was granted in September 2016. The program supports the government’s economic program, which aims to put the economy on the path to recovery, restore external sustainability, strengthen public finances, maintain financial stability, and support economic growth by advancing structural and governance reforms. The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) expects six tranches from the International Monetary Fund and the European Union (EU) totally worth $6 bln this year.