The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has blamed the raging Russia/Ukraine war fr the high food prices and petrol scarcity in Nigeria.
The world body noted that the high food prices, low tourism revenues and difficulty accessing international capital market currently experienced are a result of the current rift between the two European countries.
The IMF Managing Director, Ms Kristalina Georgieva stated her conclusions after meeting with African Ministers of Finance, African Central Bank Governors, and representatives from the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa to discuss the impact of the crisis in Ukraine.
A highpoint of the agenda during the meeting was to discuss how to sustain Africa’s recovery, already lagging other regions despite significant new obstacles.
IMF as seen in a statement on its official website on Thursday said the Russia/Ukraine war is devastating the lives of millions of people and severely affecting the Ukrainian economy.
It stressed that the war and the unprecedented sanctions imposed on Russia are having far-reaching consequences.
“They come at a delicate time for Africa. Just as the global economy and the continent are beginning to recover from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic, this new crisis threatens to undo some of that progress“, the statement noted.
According to Georgieva, there are significant concerns about the limited domestic policy space to sustainably address the ongoing crises.
She added that redoubling efforts to advance reforms that promote resilience is a priority for many countries.
She explained that the Fund is ready to assist African countries in addressing the repercussions of the war in terms of designing and implementing reforms through its policy advice, capacity development, and lending.
Georgieva said, “Recent reforms to the Fund’s lending toolkit provide greater flexibility to help meet financing needs.
“I was also pleased by the ongoing strong interest from African countries in the proposed Resilience and Sustainability Trust, which we plan to have fully operational by the end of this year.”
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