IMF “stands ready to help” Egypt

International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde has just wrapped up a visit to Egypt, and she released a statement suggesting that the Fund will move quickly to design a loan package: The authorities have indicated that Egypt would like the IMF to support Egypt’s economic program financially to help the country recover and to ...

By , a professor at Indiana University’s Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies.

International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde has just wrapped up a visit to Egypt, and she released a statement suggesting that the Fund will move quickly to design a loan package:

International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde has just wrapped up a visit to Egypt, and she released a statement suggesting that the Fund will move quickly to design a loan package:

The authorities have indicated that Egypt would like the IMF to support Egypt’s economic program financially to help the country recover and to lay the foundation for strong growth that benefits all. We are responding quickly to this request. A technical team will be arriving in Cairo in the early September to work with the authorities on their program and discuss possible forms of financial support from the IMF.

Egypt faces considerable challenges, including the need to restart growth and reduce budget and balance of payments deficits. Getting the country’s economy back on track and raising the living standards for all will not be an easy task. The Egyptian people have legitimate expectations for a better life and greater social justice. We at the IMF, stand ready to help.

Anti-IMF sentiment has often run high in Egypt, and small groups of protesters reportedly demonstrated as Lagarde met senior officials. 

David Bosco is a professor at Indiana University’s Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies. He is the author of The Poseidon Project: The Struggle to Govern the World’s Oceans. Twitter: @multilateralist

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