It’s formal. The Congolese national executive has recently requested budget support from the World Bank. Following his request, we learn from official sources, a team of experts is expected in Kinshasa in the next hours for technical discussions.
If the height of this requested budget support has not been revealed, the Minister of Finance, Henri Yav Mulang, told the President of the African Development Bank (ADB), during the meeting with the private sector in Kinshasa, that the DRC is determined to capitalize on the political gains and economic achievements of recent years.
For the National Executive, this initiative aims to stimulate, with the assistance of bilateral and multilateral partners, a sustainable revival of the Congolese economy.
AfDB supports budget support
« After the efforts to finance, alone, without external support, the electoral process, our country needs a breath of fresh air to enable it to meet the many expectations of the population. We take this opportunity to announce to you, Mr. President, that we are going to do the same in the direction of the ADB, while also asking you for budget support. We are already saying thank you for your personal attention », said the Minister of Finance.
Faced with this request, President Akinwumi Adesina, responding to a question from Zoom Eco, reassured that the African Development Bank (AfDB) will consider its budget support in collaboration with the Bretton Woods institutions with whom the DRC works and that the Discussions are in the right direction.
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Of course, the preliminary findings of the IMF’s recent Article IV DRC engagement were conclusive. Once adopted by the Fund’s Board of Directors, this will undoubtedly pave the way for negotiations for a formal program with the IMF.
Budget support history
In June 2017, the Congolese government, under the mandate of Joseph Kabila, had requested budget support in a context of crisis to enable it to cope with the current economic difficulties caused by the collapse of commodity prices in the global market. It is an end of receivability that had been reserved for the DRC by the IMF. The general director, Christine Lagarde conditioned this support by the political stability.
A year earlier, in 2016, the ADB had also refused the budget support requested by Augustin Matata Ponyo, then Prime Minister. Very clearly, she said she was unable to provide this budget support to the Congolese government as long as Congo’s immediate political future remained uncertain in the face of strong political tensions in the pre-election period, which darkened the near future and respond positively to the DRC’s appeal for appropriate assistance.
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However, the AfDB had reaffirmed its readiness to continue to allocate funds to infrastructure, agriculture and regional integration projects.
As a reminder, the last budget support obtained by the DRC goes back to December 2009. Under the Prime Minister’s mandate, Adolphe Muzito, the IMF’s Executive Board approved the three-year agreement under the Poverty Reduction Facility. for growth (PRGF) in favor of the DRC, amounting to approximately US $ 560 million. And a formal program had been concluded over three years. This breath of fresh air had arrived after six years of long journeys.
Eric TSHIKUMA
