IMF approves $1.3 billion in emergency aid for Ukraine
The International Monetary Fund announced Friday it will provide $1.3 billion in emergency aid to Ukraine through its new food crisis assistance program, AFP reported.
The package will help meet Ukraine’s “urgent balance of payment needs... while playing a catalytic role for future financial support from Ukraine’s creditors and donors,” the IMF said in a statement.
“The scale and intensity of Russia’s war against Ukraine that started more than seven months ago have caused tremendous human suffering and economic pain.... Real GDP is projected to contract by 35 percent in 2022 relative to 2021 and financing needs remain very large.”
Last week, the World Bank granted Ukraine $530 million in additional aid to “meet urgent needs created by Russia’s invasion.”
The bank said it had already mobilized almost $13 billion in emergency funding for Ukraine, $11 billion of which had already been disbursed.
The same day, the US Congress approved a new $12.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, including $3.7 billion in military equipment. The United States has given a total of $65 billion to Kyiv since Russia invaded in February.