IMF says considering Nigeria's request for funds to fight pandemic

WASHINGTON, April 7 (Reuters) - The International Monetary
Fund on Tuesday said it was considering Nigeria's request for
$3.4 billion in emergency financing to combat the impact of the
new coronavirus pandemic on Africa's biggest economy.
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said Nigeria's
economy was threatened by the twin shocks of the COVID-19
pandemic and a sharp fall in international oil prices, and the
country had asked for funding to help protect the most
vulnerable people and companies.
"We are working hard to respond to this request so that a
proposal can be considered by the IMF's Executive Board as soon
as possible,” Georgieva said in a statement.
Nigeria's finance minister, Zainab Ahmed, on Monday said her
government had requested a total of $6.9 billion from the IMF
and other multilateral lenders. It is also seeking
the suspension of debt-servicing obligations for 2020 and 2021
from multilateral lenders.
Georgieva said the Nigerian government was taking a number
of measures aimed at containing the spread of the virus and its
impact, and was working on an economic stimulus package that
will help provide relief for affected households and businesses.
The emergency funding requested under the Fund's Rapid
Financing Instrument would allow the government to address
additional and urgent balance of payments needs, and to direct
funds to priority health expenditures, she added.
Africa's most populous country and the continent's biggest
oil producer, Nigeria was still recovering from a recession
caused by weak oil prices. It was rocked by a further drop in
revenues in recent weeks.
The IMF has received requests for emergency financing help
from over 90 countries, including many in Africa.
The IMF has said it has about $50 billion available from its
emergency financing facilities to help countries cope with the
crisis, and hopes to double the amount in coming weeks.
The World Bank has approved initial disbursements of $1.9
billion as part of a $14 billion emergency response package.