Cash-strapped Zimbabwe will not be eligible for more credit unless it pays up its $142 million overdue debt, International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission’s chief, Domenico Fanizza has said.

“This isn’t much money at $142 million, but it’s a problem,” Fanizza said, adding that the country has been frozen out of debt markets.

According to Fanizza, other financial institutions including the World Bank and African Development Bank have also been barred by law from extending loans to Zimbabwe because of outstanding debts.

Zimbabwe has been a default borrower to the IMF since 1999 and it has at least $10 billion in external debts.

source: newzimbabwe.com
source: newzimbabwe.com

Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa however said it will be hard for Zimbabwe to come up with the money unless it gets “fresh money.”
Zimbabwe wants financial lender to relieve it of servicing our loans so that it can use the money to revive its economy.

“We’re unable to access fresh money and we’ve engaged the IMF, the World Bank and the African Development Bank. The Bretton Woods institutions should help us nurture and nurse this economy back to life, back to what it used to be, and not sit on the sidelines and watch us collapse,” said Chinamasa.

Early this month, Chinamasa had declared that the government has spent $180 million to service the loan outstanding loan it owed China.
Zimbabwe’s economy has been struggling for some time now as government now struggle to pay workers. Also the IMF reported that the country’s economy expanded by 3 percent in the previous year, compared to 10.5 percent it recorded in 2012.

However, Fanizza said Zimbabwe can rise above its economic challenges if it unleashes sound economic policies.

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