Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 22
By Anvar Mammadov – Trend:
Azerbaijan does not need funding from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Mohammed El Qorchi, IMF mission chief for Azerbaijan, said in an exclusive interview with Trend.
“Azerbaijan has substantial buffers that enable them to meet current financing needs,” he said. “To date, the authorities have not approached the IMF for a lending facility.”
El Qorchi added that meanwhile the IMF stands ready to assist Azerbaijan in all technical aspects, ranging from developing fiscal rules, strengthening the monetary framework, to supporting banking supervision.
“The authorities do not need to take particular steps to receive technical assistance,” El Qorchi said. “We have an ongoing and close collaborative relationship with the authorities, with frequent opportunities for dialogue.”
“Moreover, we work closely with all international financial institutions to coordinate our technical assistance support to Azerbaijan,” he said.
IMF office was opened in Baku in 1992. The organization allocated $577.3 million worth of loans to Azerbaijan in 1995-2005 to support the economic reform programs.
Azerbaijan has fully repaid the IMF loans.
Azerbaijan has seen no need for financial resources of IMF since 2005. Therefore, the two parties have been cooperating in consultations and technical assistance missions on key areas of macroeconomic policy since 2006.
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