By Jorgelina do Rosario and Rodrigo Campos
MARRAKECH, Morocco (Reuters) – The International Monetary Fund is optimistic that dialogue between Suriname and China will lead to a debt agreement aligned with terms offered to other official creditors, the head of the fund’s Western Hemisphere Department (WHD) said on Friday.
“There has been a very productive dialogue …in the last few weeks and for us it’s very important that that agreement is built in comparable terms,” Rodrigo Valdes told Reuters.
“This is very important for the next review… and the (IMF) board was very clear that they want this matter solved.”
Valdes said his understanding was that Suriname received a proposal from China and a counter-proposal was in the works or had already been delivered, “so there is progress.”
The board cleared late last month the third review of its ongoing $600 million IMF program for Suriname, granting the government’s request for a waiver of non-compliance based on measures already taken.
The South American nation reached a deal with private bondholders in May.
(Reporting by Jorgelina do Rosario in Marrakech, Morocco and Rodrigo Campos in New York; editing by John Stonestreet)
