IMF experts in Ukraine to hold series of discussions on country's fiscal plans
MOSCOW. July 16 (Interfax) - An International Monetary Fund delegation led by IMF Mission Chief for Ukraine Gavin Gray begins meetings in Kiev on Tuesday with Ukrainian officials and other partners about the country's fiscal plans for the short and medium term.
"The discussions will focus on the authorities' fiscal policy plans for the remainder of 2024 and the medium term," Ukrainian media reported, quoting Vahram Stepanyan, the IMF resident representative in Ukraine.
The head of the National Bank of Ukraine, Andrei Pyshny, said at the end of last week following meetings IMF officials that the fifth review of Ukraine's fulfillment of its obligations to the IMF in the framework of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) Arrangement would concern fiscal issues and closing the funding gap for the years to come and would require "the utmost concentration and consolidation of efforts."
The head of the Verkhovna Rada budget committee, Roksolana Pidlasa, said on social media on Monday that amendments to the 2024 state budget were being drafted to plug its "hole" of UAH 400-500 billion. She said the issue of financing the state budget in 2025 also remained open.
The IMF's Executive Board completed the fourth review of the EFF for Ukraine on June 28 and approved the release of the fifth tranche in the amount of SDR1.66 billion (about $2.2 billion), which will be used for budget support.
The four-year EFF totaling around $15.6 billion was approved on March 31, 2023 and is part of an international aid package of $122 billion for Ukraine. A first tranche of $2.7 billion was disbursed in early April, and second and third tranches of SDR664 million or about $881 million-$890 million at the then exchange rates in early July and mid-December. The IMF board at the end of March agreed to disburse a fourth EFF tranche of SDR 664 million or around $880 million to Ukraine as the result of the program's third review.
Another two tranches of SDR835 million each are envisaged in 2024 - one in September and the other in December. Two tranches are planned for 2025 - SDR684 million each will be released in early March and late August, followed by three last tranches of SDR966 million each.
The 2024 budget passed by the parliament targets a deficit of UAH 1.57 trillion or 20.6% of forecast GDP. Budget revenues are expected to total UAH 1.77 trillion, not including potential financial assistance, and spending UAH 3.36 trillion at an average exchange rate of UAH 40.7/$1.
Ukrainian state budget revenue was UAH 1.544 trillion and spending UAH 1.933 trillion in January-June 2024, according to Ukrainian Finance Ministry data. There was a budget deficit of UAH 389.7 billion or 20.2% of spending.