IMF being urged to offer support to Suriname and Haiti

Central Bank Governor Dr Alvin Hilaire has called on IMF constituency members to maintain continued support for Suriname in its International Monetary Fund (IMF)  programme arrangement.

He also called for support for Haiti.

He made the call as head of the T&T delegation during the IMF and World Bank annual constituency meeting which was recently held in Marrakesh, Morocco.

Suriname is undergoing the IMF’s review process for its extended fund facility while Haiti grapples with domestic security concerns.

“We wish to emphasize the need for the IMF to maintain a steady, unbroken engagement with Haiti given the difficult security situation. We welcome the efforts by the Executive Director (ED) to support this engagement,”  he stated.

Regarding other issues, Hilaire said this country has significantly benefitted from the fund’s capacity development through both Fund and Caribbean Technical Assistance Center (CARTAC) – based staff. 

“We encourage the ED to continue to advocate for a well-funded CARTAC even if it means that the Fund has to provide even more of its own resources to ensure that CARTAC remains viable and nimble to the needs of the beneficiary countries.

“While we are grateful for the resources donated by other countries, having to depend on these donors can leave us in a situation where the training has to be limited due to insufficient funds,” he outlined.

Hilarie also stated that the key outcome at the end of this year should be the conclusion of the 16th General Review of Quotas. 

“We hear the call of other countries to adjust the formula and realign the quotas to better reflect current realities. However, we know that getting the necessary consensus is a difficult process. We would call on the ED to advocate that at a minimum the current quota shares of the small developing states be preserved,” he explained.

The Central Bank Governor also noted that while there is support to expand the scope of the Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST),   Barbados and Jamaica have availed themselves of this facility, which currently seeks to address long-term challenges of pandemic preparedness and climate vulnerabilities.

“However, in other Caribbean countries, there are additional long-term macro-critical challenges that need to be addressed. In addition, the link to having an Upper Credit Tranche programme and the limited effective funds available given our small share of the quota can be seen as deterrents to accessing the facility,” Hilaire added.