IMF approves $5.24m emergency aid to Guinea Bissau

The administration council of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday approved a 5.24- million-U.S. dollar emergency aid to Guinea Bissau, an official source has said.
The announcement was made in Bissau by the IMF resident representative Alfredo Torrez who noted that "the money will help to restore macroeconomic stability by ending budgetary deficits and enabling the country to address balance of payment issues."
Torrez said IMF's financial assistance will equally help considerably reduce poverty and reinforce the intervention capacity of Guinea Bissau's government.
"The approval of this aid will enable Bissau authorities to begin negotiations with other development partners for additional aid," he added.
The IMF resident representative said in the last two years, Guinea Bissau's Gross Domestic Product had reduced by 2 percent, something that has considerably increased poverty.
He hailed efforts by Domingos Simoes Pereira's government to pay all salary arrears in the public sector as well as making efforts to revive economic activities in the country.
Elsewhere, Portugal has given Guinea Bissau a loan of 6.825 million euros (over 8.4 million U.S. dollars) to support the country's emergency plan.