Chuka hails IMF for role in economy
Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) Governor Charles Chuka says Malawi’s relationship with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has helped the country to get its economy back on track.
Speaking after opening the East Afritac -19th Steering Committee Meeting in Lilongwe, Chuka said IMF is a partner Malawi will always work with to improve the economy.
The Afritac centres are part of the IMF’s Africa capacity building initiative, launched in May 2012 in response to calls from African leaders.
The East Afritac was opened in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in 2002 and now serves Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.
Said Chuka: “Macroeconomic stability that is steadily unfolding is in part attributed to close collaboration that the country has with the IMF . The IMF has played a major role in capacity building in Malawi through the technical assistance rendered at both headquarters and regional level through the East Africa Technical Assistance Centre [Afritac].”
According to Chuka, the centre recently provided technical assistance to Malawi’s National Statistical Office (NSO) in the area of National Accounts by helping the institution to come up with a series of quarterly gross domestic product (GDP) figures.
IMF East Africa Regional technical assistance centre coordinator Herve Joly said the meeting is very important because it maps the way forward on how member States can mobilise local resources to improve service delivery.
“The initiative promotes strengthening the capacity of the seven countries who belong to the East Afritac on how to generate local resources. IMF is happy to work closely with countries Malawi through the East Afritac,” said Joly.
