IMF approves record $15.6 billion aid program for Ukraine

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Ukrainian PM Denys Shmyhal said that the country will receive the first tranche of more than $2.7 billion in near future.

“The IMF funds will help the government finance all critical spending and maintain macro-financial stability,” Shmyhal wrote in a Telegram post.

“The program will consist of two parts: the first is urgent financing of our victory in the war. The second part is the post-war reconstruction and transformation of Ukraine.”

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The IMF press service clarified that the decision is part of a total $115 billion support package that includes the IMF loan, $80 billion in pledges from other countries, and $20 in debt relief.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the IMF and its Managin Director, Kristalina Georgieva, for approving the program.

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“Together we support the Ukrainian economy and move forward to victory,” Zelenskyy said in a Twitter post.

On March 21, the IMF announced that it had reached an agreement at the staff level on a new four-year EFF program for Ukraine worth SDR 11.6 billion (about $15.6 billion).

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The program is supposed to be divided into two stages. The first is aimed at maintaining fiscal and financial stability, designed for 12-18 months, while the second stage is aimed at bootstrapping growth and EU integration through major structural reforms.

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