Press Release No. 05/303

Press Release: IMF to Extend 100 Percent Debt Relief to Tajikistan Under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative

December 23, 2005

Mr. Sarmad Khawaja, the Resident Representative of the International Monetary Fund in Tajikistan, issued the following statement on December 22 in Dushanbe:

"Under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative, the IMF Executive Board has approved debt relief for Tajikistan (see Press Release No 05/286). As part of the Initiative, the IMF will provide 100 percent debt relief on all debt incurred by Tajikistan before January 1, 2005 that remains outstanding. This amounts to approximately US$99 million. This debt relief should become available in early January as soon as the remaining consents of the contributors to the PRGF Trust Subsidy Account have been received. The international community has made these additional resources available to help Tajikistan make progress toward its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

"Tajikistan has qualified for IMF debt relief because of its overall satisfactory recent macroeconomic performance, progress in poverty reduction, and improved in public expenditure management. In particular, in recent years, Tajikistan has established a track record of satisfactory macroeconomic performance, the government has made significant progress in implementing its Poverty Reduction Strategy, and it has improved public expenditure management systems. Performance in these areas provides assurances that resources made available under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative will be used effectively.

"The IMF looks forward to working with Tajikistan to help it develop a strong and stable economy and to make sustained progress toward the MDGs," he said.