Egypts share in IMFs SDRs allocation amounts to $2.8bln

Egypt - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is allocating Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) valued at $650 billion, which is effective as of August 23rd, the IMF announced on its website.

This marks the largest allocation in the IMF’s history and is expected to provide additional liquidity to the global economic system, Director of IMF Kristalina Georgieva said in a press release.

The allocation aims at adding on to countries’ foreign exchange reserves as well as cut their dependency on more expensive domestic or external debt, Georgieva noted.

The SDR allocation will enable countries to bolster their economies and combat the COVID-19 crisis, she added.

SDRs are being allocated to countries in proportion to their quota shares in the IMF, which means that a sum of around $275 billion will be given to emerging and developing countries, of which low-income countries will receive nearly $21 billion, she highlighted.

“This SDR allocation is a critical component of the IMF’s broader effort to support countries through the pandemic, which includes: US$117 billion in new financing for 85 countries; debt service relief for 29 low-income countries; and policy advice and capacity development support to over 175 countries to help secure a strong and more sustainable recovery,” Kristalina remarked.

In the same vein, banking sources told Masrawy that Egypt’s share of the SDRs allocation amounts to $2.8 billion.

This allocation will help all IMF members (currently 190 members) to address the long-term global need for reserves and support a stable global economy, particularly the vulnerable countries struggling to adapt to the impacts of the pandemic.