Matik Kueth
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. Dr. James Alic Garang, Governor of the Central Bank of South Sudan [Matik Kueth, The City Review]
South Sudan is seeking a $250 million loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to boost the country’s ailing economy, said the governor of the Central Bank of South Sudan, Dr. James Alic.
Alic, who spoke at the African Development Bank’s annual meetings in Nairobi, Kenya on Tuesday, stated that the country is in dire need of additional sources of financing to save the economy from further glitches.
“We are facing severe challenges with our oil exports, which constitute about 90 per cent of our revenue,” Alic stated.
He said the effects on the national economy are severe, as there is less oil available for sale on global markets and less hard currency trickling in to settle the debts.
Alic noted that to obtain the money, compliance with the IMF’s policy standards is essential.
“We have already delivered an audit of the central bank’s financial statements for 2021,” he said.
He pointed out that South Sudan still needed to step up its efforts in other areas.
“With the IMF, there is no free lunch. We are working very hard to meet those policy requirements,” he stressed.
He added, “We are negotiating to pay part of it, but we’ll still need to settle this debt.”
Alic claimed that South Sudan and Qatar are negotiating a settlement for a $1 billion given by Qatar National Bank (QNB) for a loan that went into default.
The lawsuit is based on a $700 million loan that South Sudan received from a Qatari bank in 2012.
The war in Sudan has had an impact on South Sudan’s oil-dependent economy ever since the pipeline that carries the majority of the country’s crude oil was damaged in February 2024. The IMF has provided South Sudan with three fast credit facilities since 2020.
However, South Sudan signed another new contract with QNB in 2015, outlining its plans to pay back the loan it borrowed. After the country sought for extra money to be returned within 15 years beginning in 2019, the loan was revised in 2016 and solidified in 2018.
But subsequently, South Sudan has not repaid the debt, which has led the bank located in Qatar to file a lawsuit against the country.
The case was initiated by the Qatar National Bank on October 7, 2020, against South Sudan, and on March 24, 2021, a court was formally established.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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