The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Executive Board has approved a disbursement of $363 million under its Rapid Credit Facility to help Democratic Republic of Congo confront the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Fund said.
“Congo is experiencing a severe shock as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the IMF wrote in a statement late on Wednesday. “The short-term economic outlook has deteriorated quickly due to the fall of minerals’ prices and the impact of needed containment and mitigation measures.”
Following the Executive Board discussion, Mitsuhiro Furusawa, Deputy Managing Director and Chair sent a statement in which he said that DR Congo being a fragile country, the COVID-19 crisis is expected to have a considerable economic and social impact.
“The outbreak will affect DRC’s economy, as containment measures impact domestic activities and exports are hit hard amid weaker commodity prices and global demand. Along with a decline in financial flows, the pandemic has created substantial urgent external financing needs,” his statement read.
