An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team led by Mohamad H. Elhage visited Nairobi from September 18–22 for a staff visit to discuss recent developments, progress under the Staff-Monitored Program (SMP), and the economic outlook with the Somali authorities.
At the end of the visit, Mr. Elhage issued the following statement:
“Somalia is marking important milestones on reform and policy implementation, particularly under the SMP. Since 2015, it has concluded two Article IV consultations with the Fund and in May 2016, the authorities entered a 12-month SMP with the Fund to help economic reconstruction efforts and establish a track record of policy and reform implementation. “Given the broadly satisfactory performance under the SMP, in June 2017, IMF management completed the first SMP with Somalia and, at the request of the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS), approved a new SMP covering the period May 2017–April 2018.
“This second SMP comes at an important juncture for Somalia. Despite recent advances on reform and policy implementation, development challenges for Somalia are daunting. Somalia’s economic and social infrastructure are still significantly underdeveloped, institutions are weak, poverty remains widespread, and the drought has compounded the situation.