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Cabinet to Receive Submission on IMF Article IV Review Mission

June 10, 2009

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Cabinet, will on June 22, receive a submission from the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Article IV review mission to the island last week.
Prime Minister, the Hon. Bruce Golding, told the House of Representatives yesterday (June 9), that the Government used the occasion of the visit, to discuss with the IMF team, the facilities that would be available from the fund, in the event that Jamaica needed to seek balance of payment support.
“We have a firm understanding as to the facilities that are available (and) the extent to which Jamaica would qualify. The Ministry of Finance is to prepare a Cabinet note to brief Cabinet on the possibilities in the event that we need to seek the intervention of the fund,” the Prime Minister informed.
He was responding to questions posed by Member of Parliament from Central Kingston, Rev. Ronald Thwaites, about the possibility of Jamaica resuming a borrowing relationship with the IMF.
Mr. Golding stated that while no negotiations have commenced with the IMF, and no applications have been submitted, “the possibility of seeking an appropriate IMF arrangement is something that continues to be on our radar.”
He noted that there has been significant fallout in foreign exchange, emanating largely from the “huge contraction of revenue from the bauxite and alumina industry and a 14 per cent reduction in remittance flows as at the end of April.”
“A concern that we have had and I think I have alluded to that in the Lower House before, is our ability to ensure an adequate amount of foreign exchange to meet Jamaica’s requirement throughout this year. We can’t be sanguine as to the ability of our existing and projected reserves to withstand the pressure of demand,” he stated.

Last Updated: August 26, 2013

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