The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has released its updated economic funding support totaling $99 billion for Nigeria, emerging market and developing countries to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a report, the Fund said it advanced $29 billion under the Rapid Credit Facility and Rapid Financing instrument to Nigeria and other beneficiary countries.
The IMF said other ore countries also benefited from IMF support through other channels, including augmentations under existing programmes, to the tune of over $70 billion, bringing the total support fund to $99 billion.
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The Fund said the human toll and global economic disruption from the COVID-19 pandemic triggered unprecedented demand for financing.
The multilateral institution, said more than one-third of its membership have received relief from the Fund. “Since the onset of the pandemic, the IMF has responded rapidly and decisively to meet urgent and exceptional demand for financial assistance from its membership,” it said in emailed statement. .
Since March 2020, 70 members, including many low-income countries, have received financial support under the two instruments created to address urgent financing needs that may arise from natural disasters (including pandemics, earthquakes, hurricanes).
It explained that in April, the IMF also approved a broad package of reforms which built on previous changes to strengthen the reach and flexibility of financial assistance under these facilities.
Even compared to previous crises such as the Ebola epidemic, the needs triggered by this current pandemic are unprecedented. The Fund’s rapid response helped many countries to contain and mitigate the impact of this external shock.
This financial assistance does not have traditional IMF conditionality and phasing of disbursements over time, although countries still undertake policy commitments to address their difficulties, and governance commitments about how those resources are to be spent.
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