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Patrick Gitton, resident representative of the IMF in the RepuРbУlicБofРИКА
Macedonia whose mandate ends in August 2016

matter of reduction of costs, however it early payment of the foreign debt? (photo: Economy and business)
seems reasonable not to appoint some- It is not true that the IMF is an un-
one from Washington who will live and 15
work in Skopje, and the country at the reasonable inflexible institution. I know
moment or for the past few years has this from personal experience. I remem-
not expressed any existing or future in- ber the moments when in the period of
tention for a financial arrangement with Trpeski as a Governor of the NBRM, in
the IMF. Washington with Banerjee we were sup-
posed to “tune” the monetary framework
The IMF did not appoint a new resi- and the goal, which was successfully re-
dent representative in Macedonia. Is alized, was to leave as much space as
this a bad signal for the international possible for growth of credits. Or, in the
financial markets and for the foreign period of the next governor, when Mark
investors? It does not have to be so by Griffiths was supposed to take the posi-
itself. Does this mean that if Macedo- tion of the Chief of Mission at the time,
nia decides to issue a new Eurobond, for Rozvadovski, so in the presence of other
this reason it will not be able to success- representatives of the National Bank at
fully realize the emission or will have a meeting in Washington I had a small
to pay a higher price for the borrowing? “war” with IMF’s representatives in or-
No. The international financial markets der to prove to them that the interest
could have the totally opposite position rate of the treasury bills of the NBRM
and they can have a positive viewpoint could reduce from the past high level,
of IMF’s consideration that they should thereby the macroeconomic stability
have their permanent representative will NBRM reduced, reducing the inter-
“on the ground”. est expenses for the Macedonian private
sector. My point was that the IMF was
That’s all about speculations. What a very hard negotiator, however always
should be pointed out on this occasion open for reasonable proposals.
is that the IMF is definitively a friend of
the Republic of Macedonia and does not The IMF never concealed the macro-
deserve to be a subject of the local daily- economic, and the economic situation
political games here. From December in Macedonia in general. Thereby the
1992, when the Republic of Macedonia indications of their representatives were
inherited the membership in the IMF as always presented with a sophisticated
an independent country after the disin- diplomatic dictionary. They believed that
tegration of the SFRY to present day, in
these past 24 years on many occasions
when this was necessary, the IMF helped
Macedonia. Numerous financial arrange-
ments were concluded, and money were
borrowed for settlement in the payment-
balance position of this country. In addi-
tion, in return the IMF urged all national
governments to make the necessary un-
popular reforms. And there was no prob-
lem because the frequently used excuse
was that the reform must be performed
“because the IMF says so”. The IMF was
the “culprit” that the money from the
sale of ESM were not lost because it in-
dicated that they either have to stay as a
part of the foreign exchange reserves or
they could be used for payment of a debt
abroad. What would have been the for-
eign debt today if they were not used for

July-August 2016