WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st July, 2020) Madagascar will receive it $171.9 million from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the second emergency loan to mitigate the effects of the measures imposed to fight the novel coronavirus pandemic, the IMF Executive board said in a press release on Thursday.
"This additional disbursement brings the total IMF COVID-19 support to Madagascar to US$337.9 million," the release said.
Madagascar's economic outlook has worsened since the approval of the first request to the IMF Rapid Credit Facility due to a further deterioration of the global environment and a deepening of the impact of the pandemic, the release said.
As a result, the nation's gross domestic product is expected to shrink by 1 percent in 2020, the release added.
The latest disbursement will help finance health and economic relief spending under the government's national contingency plan to fight the pandemic and continue to catalyze further support from donors, according to the release.
