IMF approves Vietnam loans

IMF approves Vietnam loans

WASHINGTON (AFP): The International Monetary Fund executive board on Friday approved in principle a three-year US$368 million loan to support the government's efforts to boost growth and reduce poverty, an IMF statement said here.

A final decision from the board awaits approval by the World Bank, the IMF's sister institution, of Vietnam's poverty reduction strategy paper. The Bank executive board is expected to take action on the matter April 12.

The funds will back a program that "seeks to build on Vietnam's recent record of positive performance and policy momentum," said IMF Deputy Managing Director Shigemitsu Sugisaki.

"The reform agenda is appropriately centered on accelerating structural reforms to boost private investment and competitiveness of the economy."

Under the program, Vietnam's gross domestic product growth is projected to rise to seven percent in 2003 from an anticipated five percent this year, with inflation held to under five percent.