May 26 (SeeNews) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that its executive board approved two arrangements in the total amount of some 178 million euro ($190.1 million) to support Kosovo's economic policies.
"After successfully overcoming the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Kosovo’s growth in 2022 was tempered by the fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine. Higher and more volatile commodity prices fueled inflation, and the negative terms-of-trade shock adversely impacted disposable incomes," acting chair of the board Gita Gopinath said in a statement on Thursday.
The IMF said it approved a 24-month precautionary standby arrangement (SBA) of around 100 million euro and an arrangement under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) in the amount of some 78 million euro.
The standby arrangement will provide liquidity in case downside risks materialize, including from Russia’s war in Ukraine, the IMF said. The arrangement will support structural reforms to strengthen fiscal and financial governance and enhance growth.
The RSF will provide affordable financing to support Kosovo’s climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts, including through greener electricity production and more efficient energy use, and is expected to catalyze other climate financing. Kosovo is the first European country to access the RSF which aligns closely with Kosovo’s new Energy Strategy for 2023–32 approved by parliament earlier this year, the IMF noted.
($ = 0.931985 euro)