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© Reuters. IMF African Division Director Abebe Aemro Selassie speaks all the diagram through an interview with Reuters at the annual assembly of the World Financial Fund and the World Bank, in Marrakech, Morocco October 9, 2023. REUTERS/Susana Vera
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By Rachel Savage and Jorgelina form Rosario
MARRAKECH (Reuters) – The World Financial Fund’s (IMF) Africa director acknowledged on Monday that he was “hopeful” that Zambia and its legitimate creditors would announce a finalised debt restructuring deal before Thursday.
“We’re very hopeful that the authorities and the creditors could be in a space to set an announcement very, very quickly,” Abebe Selassie told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank annual conferences in Marrakech.
“They’ve told us that there would possibly be been very right growth, that they’re within the final stage of finalising things.”
Zambia grew to change into the first African country to default within the COVID-19 pandemic era in 2020 and its restructuring beneath the G20’s Frequent Framework job has been beset by delays.
It clinched an agreement in June to restructure $6.3 billion in debt owed to governments abroad including China and members of the Paris Membership of creditor countries. To formalise the debt deal, Zambia has to signal a memorandum of idea (MoU) with these legitimate creditors.
Zambia’s Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane acknowledged in gradual September that he expected the MoU to be “finalised and executed before the pause of the year.”
Final week, Zambia’s global bondholders formally started debt talks with the authorities, three sources told Reuters, a key step in restructuring more than $3 billion of international bonds.