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IMF team visits Zim ahead of decision on expulsion
Mail & Guardian (SA)
August 19, 2005

http://www.mg.co.za/articlepage.aspx?area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__africa/&articleid=248572

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is sending a team to Harare next week for talks ahead of a key meeting that will decide whether to expel Zimbabwe from the lending club, the country's finance minister said on Friday.

"We are being considered at the IMF board meeting on September 9 and these are routine consultations," said Finance Minister Herbert Murerwa.

The delegation is due to arrive on Monday, following up on a visit in June that took place during the government's urban clean-up campaign in which shacks, homes, market stalls and small shops were destroyed.

"We agreed on some measures and the IMF will assess how the government is resolving certain challenges," said Murerwa.

Zimbabwe's relations with the IMF have been stormy in recent years with the international body threatening to expel the southern African country over unsound economic policy.

The country has made various commitments, including adjusting its exchange rate, to reverse economic decline and mend its relations with the IMF.

Zimbabwe has fallen behind in IMF repayments on more than $300-million of debt since 2001, but South Africa has said it is ready to step in with a loan to ensure that its neighbour retains its IMF membership.

The IMF in June urged the government to take "decisive action" to lower its deficit, which stands at between 17% to 22% of GDP, according to private economists.

"A rebuilding of relations with the international community is a critical part of the effort to reverse the economic decline," the mission said in a statement on its return from Harare.

"We hope the authorities will work more closely with us to formulate and implement such a policy package, which would help stabilise the economy and improve the welfare of the Zimbabwean people," it said. - Sapa-AFP

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