IMF Executive Board Completes Fifth Reviews under Extended Credit Facility Arrangement and Extended Arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility for Côte d’Ivoire and Approves US$133.9 Million Disbursement

June 14, 2019

  • The country’s economic outlook remains strong, with growth projected at about 7½ percent in 2019.
  • The budget deficit is projected to converge to the WAEMU regional norm of 3 percent of GDP in 2019.
  • The program aims to foster inclusive growth and poverty reduction, support fiscal discipline, enhance domestic revenue mobilization, ensure debt sustainability, and achieve a sustainable balance of payments position.

On June 14, 2019, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed the fifth reviews under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) [1] arrangement and the extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) [2] for Côte d’Ivoire. Completion of the reviews enables the immediate disbursement of SDR 96.786 million (about US$133.9 million), bringing total disbursements under the arrangements to SDR 553.6 million (about US$765.8 million).

The three-year ECF/EFF arrangements with a total access of SDR 650.4 million (about US$889.7 million or 100 percent of Côte d’Ivoire’s quota) were approved by the IMF Executive Board on December 12, 2016.

Following the Executive Board discussion, Mr. Furusawa, Acting Chair and Deputy Managing Director, made the following statement:

“Côte d’Ivoire is implementing a program of macroeconomic policies and structural reforms to sustain strong growth, ensure macroeconomic stability, reduce poverty and promote inclusiveness. The performance under this IMF-supported program has been commendable, with all performance criteria and all but one indicative target met at end-December 2018. Five out of six structural benchmarks were also met. The medium-term growth outlook is expected to remain robust, predicated on sound policies to lock in macroeconomic stability and improve the business environment.

“The 2018 budget deficit target was met, and the authorities have reiterated their commitment to reach a budget deficit of 3 percent of GDP in 2019 and onwards, which will be critical for both domestic macroeconomic stability and regional external stability at the level of the West African Economic and Monetary Union. This can be achieved via additional tax revenue mobilization, which will create fiscal space to address socio-economic and infrastructure needs. While the authorities have embarked on revenue administration reforms to secure more tax revenue over the medium-term, broadening the tax base also offers currently untapped revenue potential. To preserve debt sustainability, prudent management of public debt needs to continue, including by limiting contingent liabilities. Borrowing policy carefully assessing the cost and benefits of new loans is required to keep Côte d’Ivoire’s debt on a sustainable path.

“Structural reforms are ongoing and need to be sustained on all fronts. The authorities are implementing reforms to strengthen revenue administration and public financial management, consolidate banking sector stability, promote inclusive growth, improve the business climate and reinforce the statistical apparatus.”

Côte d’Ivoire: Selected Economic Indicators: 2016–21


2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

Est.

Projections

(Annual percentage changes, unless otherwise indicated)

National income

GDP at constant prices

8.0

7.7

7.4

7.5

7.3

7.0

GDP deflator

-1.1

-1.7

0.4

1.0

1.6

1.6

Consumer price index (annual average)

0.7

0.7

0.4

1.0

2.0

2.0

External sector

Exports of goods, f.o.b., at current prices

-7.0

6.8

-4.9

7.9

9.5

8.4

Imports of goods, f.o.b., at current prices

-8.5

6.5

7.1

2.9

11.8

8.8

Central government operations

Total revenue and grants

6.6

8.0

5.3

10.6

9.8

9.0

Total expenditure

12.2

9.9

3.4

6.2

9.4

8.5

Money and credit

Money and quasi-money (M2)

10.1

8.8

13.5

11.0

12.3

10.1

Credit to the economy

13.3

15.2

11.3

13.2

13.3

13.3

(Percent of GDP unless otherwise indicated)

Central government operations

Total revenue and grants

20.0

20.4

19.9

20.3

20.4

20.4

Total revenue

18.6

19.2

18.8

19.0

19.2

19.5

Total expenditure

24.0

24.9

23.8

23.3

23.4

23.3

Overall balance, incl. grants, payment order basis

-4.0

-4.5

-4.0

-3.0

-3.0

-2.9

Gross investment

17.7

19.5

20.8

22.0

22.9

23.8

Central government

7.4

7.5

7.1

6.9

7.1

7.2

Nongovernment sector

10.3

12.0

13.7

15.1

15.8

16.6

Gross domestic saving

20.3

22.1

21.3

23.7

24.4

25.2

Central government

2.2

2.0

2.4

3.3

3.6

3.9

Nongovernment sector

18.2

20.2

18.9

20.4

20.8

21.2

External sector balance

Current account balance

-1.2

-2.7

-4.7

-3.5

-3.3

-3.1

Overall balance

-1.2

1.7

0.8

-0.1

0.6

1.0

Public sector debt

Central government debt, gross

48.4

49.8

53.2

52.5

51.2

49.6

Central government debt (excluding C2D)

43.1

45.3

49.7

49.9

49.3

48.0

External debt

29.0

30.5

36.5

37.8

35.3

34.8

External debt (excluding C2D)

23.4

25.4

32.5

34.7

33.1

32.9

Memorandum items:

Nominal GDP (CFAF billions)

20,931

22,151

23,900

25,955

28,308

30,786

Sources: Ivoirien authorities; and IMF staff estimates and projections.

[1] The ECF is a lending arrangement that provides sustained program engagement over the medium to long term in case of protracted balance of payments problems.

[2] The EFF was established to provide assistance to countries: (i) experiencing serious payments imbalances because of structural impediments; or (ii) characterized by slow growth and an inherently weak balance of payments position.

IMF Communications Department
MEDIA RELATIONS

PRESS OFFICER: Lucie Mboto Fouda

Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org