Last Updated on May 16, 2020, 9:12 AM AST by Anthony Morris
The IMF approved a $520 million loan for Jamaica on Friday to help the country in dealing with the urgent needs which have been raised by the global COVID-19 pandemic.
The shock of coronavirus has come after the country had successfully graduated from an IMF-supported reform program. Still, it has now been hit by the need for emergency spending because of a travel shutdown.
IMF Deputy Managing Director Tao Zhang said that despite the best efforts by the authorities, the pandemic has severely impacted the Jamaican economy, as a sudden stop in tourism and falling remittances are generating a sizable balance-of-payments need.
The money would be coming from the IMF’s Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI), which would allow the nations to circumvent the lengthy negotiations which are usually needed to secure a full economic assistance program, the time that most countries do not have as they are struggling to cope with the coronavirus crisis.
The government of the Caribbean nation, which has seen just over 500 cases and nine deaths from the COVID-19, according to the WHO, declared the entire island a disaster area and established a special task force to coordinate the pandemic response and recovery efforts.
But without vital tourism revenue, the IMF projects the economy will contract 5.6 per cent this year. However, Zhang cautioned that the “outlook remains subject to an unusually high degree of uncertainty.”
He said the funding also would “catalyze additional support from other international financial institutions and development partners.”
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
