Ukraine, IMF launch formal negotiations on new loan program

On Monday, November 17, Ukraine and the International Monetary Fund began official talks on a new loan program, the Fund's press service reported, LIGA.net.

"The IMF mission led by Gavin Gray began discussions today with the Ukrainian authorities in the context of their request to launch a new Extended Fund Facility (EFF)," IMF Resident Representative to Ukraine Priscila Tofano said in a statement.

"The discussions will focus on the economic policy objectives of the authorities, with an emphasis on both fiscal and monetary policies to ensure stability in the face of continued extremely high uncertainty, and structural measures to strengthen governance, fight corruption and support economic growth," the Fund said in a statement.

Ukraine is in a hurry to agree on a new four-year program with the IMF by the end of the year, as it has already exhausted most of the funds under the current $15.5 billion program. The current program with the IMF runs until 2027, but as National Bank Governor Andriy Pyshnyi explained , it focuses heavily on post-war reconstruction, while the war is not over and the next budget will also be a war budget.

On September 9, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko handed IMF mission chief Gavin Gray a letter with a request for a new cooperation program, which should support Ukraine over the next few years.

The size of the new IMF program is estimated at $8 billion.

• In March 2023, Ukraine received a four-year Extended Fund Facility from the IMF totaling $15.6 billion. In two years, there have been eight successful reviews of the program, and Ukraine has received nine tranches.