Iraq gets $1.8 bln IMF lifeline
PUKmedia 28-09-2009 17:13:45

The International Monetary Fund has decided to give Iraq $1.8 billion to support the country's economy and come out of the recession caused by the global financial crisis, a senior official with Iraq's central bank said Monday.

"The money is to support liquidity and to improve growth of the Iraqi economy," central bank advisor Mudher Kasim told Dow Jones Newswires on the sidelines of an IMF-Iraq meeting in the Jordanian capital, Amman.

Kasim said that the money is expected to be spent on infrastructure projects that the country is in dire need of. A massive budget deficit, estimated at nearly $19 billion this year, is adding to pressure on the government to try to find new sources of financing.

The IMF is specialized in providing loans to member states to deal with temporary deficits in their balance of payments.

-Maktoob Business-