Mauritania still hopeful of debt relief
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Nouakchott, Mauritania, 12/24 - Mauritanian authorities are optimistic that the country would still benefit from debt cancellation under a programme announced by the G8 nations in Scotland last July, pledging to meet conditions demanded by partners “as soon as possible”. The G8 debt write-off will cover multilateral debts owed the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the African Development Bank (ADB). Mauritania was among 14 African initially listed to benefit from the debt reprieve, but the IMF Wednesday announced debt relief of US$4.8 billion for a number of countries, eight of them from Africa. Those qualified are said to satisfy IMF conditions for economic reform, poverty reduction and anti-corruption initiatives. But a range of Mauritanian government told a news conference at the Nouakchott International Exchange Centre Thursday night that Mauritania had “temporarily failed” to meet the requirements and would do so within another six month period. The officials addressing the conference were foreign minister Ahmed Ould Sid`Ahmed, finance minister Abdallahi Ould Souleymane Ould Cheikh Sidya, economy and development minister Mohamed Ould Abed and Central Bank governor Zeine Ould Zeidane. “Mauritania will have a programme with the IMF which will enable it to show its ability to preserve the macroeconomic balance and to keep an acceptable macroeconomic management,” the finance sinister said. He unveiled the economic programme and approach adopted by the new Nouakchott authorities to benefit from the cancellation of the debt within the next six months. Justifying the country`s “temporary exclusion” from the debt cancellation initiative, the finance Minister added: “In 2004 Mauritania didn`t have a programme with the IMF and its relations with the financial institution were bad”. He also noted that some figures given to the Bretton Woods institution “were not coherent with reality”. |