“You Don’t Often Hear about the IMF’s Flexibility.” What Chicu Told about Moldova’s Relations with the Fund

Prime Minister Ion Chicu said that due to the flexibility shown by the International Monetary Fund, Moldova will not have to make a pause in relations with the IMF. Chicu said this on February 5, at a joint press conference with the head of the IMF mission for Moldova Ruben Atoyan. Chicu said during negotiations with the IMF disagreements could arise over domestic gas tariffs and the government’s intentions to allocate significant funds for infrastructure. “We discussed these problems, and thank God, these risks have not materialized, so we do not need to take a break in relations with the IMF. I will no longer use the word “flexibility”, but we effectively talked and came to a consensus. On the contrary, as Mr. Atoyan noted, the IMF welcomes the government’s intention to invest in infrastructure. Yes, so far we have a poor assessment of capital investments, but we expect that the IMF assessment will help us improve our capabilities in this matter,” Chicu said. He noted that the new program with the IMF is important for Moldova not only because of the money that the country should receive. “For me and my team, a program with the IMF is needed, in particular, in order to get support in resolving the problems that we face in reforms implementation,” Chicu said. The Prime Minister noted that the share of grants in the national public budget in 2019 was 2.4%. “This is a lot, but, believe me, is not critical for Moldova. We are relying on a new program with the IMF because of assistance in promoting reforms, and to a lesser extent because of money,” the head of government said. Chicu noted that Moldova owes its success in implementing the program to the IMF team, which showed sufficient flexibility welcoming the implementation of policies in the country’s interests. “Yes, sometimes they were not quite flexible, but this is not their fault. This largely depends on the negotiating capabilities of partners. But I think the most important result is that we are able to successfully complete this project,” Chicu said. “You don’t often hear about the IMF’s flexibility,” Atoyan remarked jokingly, adding that the IMF does not insist on raising the gas tariff. Recall that in November 2019, Chicu said that contradictions on two issues could arise in negotiations with the IMF. The IMF insisted on raising domestic gas tariffs and was skeptical of the government’s intentions to make significant investments in infrastructure. Chicu then said that the government would prefer to take a break in relations with the IMF if it insists on conditions unacceptable to Moldova.