The IMF will postpone for January 2014 the fifth review under Bosnia’s EUR 390mn stand-by loan deal and the country’s request for extension and enlargement of the agreement, the fund’s resident representative in Sarajevo, Ruben Atoyan, was quoted as saying by Dnevni Avaz daily. The statement comes after Bosnia’s state-level parliament failed to approve the 2014 budget by the IMF’s December 9 deadline due to a disagreement in the country's tripartite presidency.
The lower chamber of Bosnia’s parliament, the House of Representatives, will start discussions on the budget draft on Thursday, December 12.
The IMF executive board was originally expected to approve the sixth tranche worth EUR 38mn under the 24-month loan deal on December 20. So far Bosnia’s track record under the current agreement with the fund has been good and the country has received EUR 237mn, or more than half of the funds provided under the stand-by deal.
The fund’s assistance will ensure most of the funding of Bosnia’s two entities and state institutions’ financial obligations next year which are expected to increase significantly due to rising debt servicing expenses.
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