Kosovo signs very first IMF loan

The government of Kosovo signed an agreement for its very first International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan on Thursday.

Kosovo Prime Minister Hasim Thaci at a news conference in Pristina said the terms of the EUR 110 million loan were favorable and added that the IMF loan would ensure a growth rate of 6 percent for Kosovo.

Thaci also said that with the IMF Kosovo had developed an economic development plan that included donations and grants promised by the European Union and World Bank two years ago.

Jurgen Odenius, head of the IMF mission to Kosovo said the loan would improve the budget of Kosovo institutions and lead to a more stable fiscal environment.

Kosovo, the breakaway province of Serbia that unilaterally declared independence in 2008, become a member of the World Bank and IMF last year.