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By Matthew Russell Lee, CJR PFT NY Post

NEW YORK CITY, Nov 7 – When the International Monetary Fund held its biweekly embargoed media briefing on November 7, Inner City Press submitted questions including on Sudan. Inner City Press asked: "On Sudan, please provide the IMF's comment on FM Elbadawi saying Sudan has agreed a roadmap to “rehabilitate” the country with the IMF, adding that the plan involved structural reforms and that as part of the deal Sudan would not have to pay its lenders debt arrears. Is that true?"

 From the IMF's November 7 transcript, with video on page: "There's a question on Sudan from Matthew Lee asking if we can provide a comment on the finance minister saying, Sudan has agreed to roadmap to rehabilitate the country with the IMF adding that the plan involved structural reforms and that is part of the deal. Sudan would not have to pay its lenders debt arrears. Is that true? So, we are in discussion with the Sudan authorities on how the IMF can help with their reform efforts and to acquire adequate donor assistance. Sudan remains eligible for debt relief when it meets all the requirements, including receiving financing assurances from creditors for debt relief, establishing a track record of performance and clearing arrears to the IMF.  So, while we can help Sudan build the track record of performance, progress on those other points I just mentioned will depend on support from creditor countries. So, at this stage it's not possible to provide a firm timeline for the fulfillment of those steps. Let me add that exiting from the U.S. state sponsor of terrorism list would be important for facilitating creditor consensus on debt relief."

On September 26 Spokesperson already then Gerry Rice,  for new Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, on Turkey said "this is also from Matthew, he has asked ' On Turkey, what is the IMF's response to ruling AKP deputy chair Numan Kurtulmuş criticizing a meeting between IMF & opposition parties, saying Turkey has "closed the topic with the IMF."'

  Then Rice said it is normal to meet with opposition - except in Cameroon, apparently - and that there has been no indication from the Turkish authorities they are looking for a program.

  On September 12 Inner City Press asked the IMF: "On Zimbabwe, please confirm or deny IMF's Patrick Imam saying that "it is clear, compared to the projections of the original SMP, which did not foresee the severity of the drought and its secondary impact, nor the electricity shock, that growth is almost certainly going to be revised downwards and inflation upwards compared to the original SMP forecasts." And what is the IMF's view of the (economic) impact of the crack down on protest and human rights defenders?"

  Spokesperson Gerry Rice said that the IMF team is in Harare, from September 5 to 17. On human rights, he said the IMF "focuses on economics" and that such questions should be directed to... bilateral creditor. At least he didn't say the UN, which doesn't care. Here are Inner City Press' other questions to the IMF:

On Somalia, please provide a read out or response to reports that Somali Minister of Finance Abdirahman Duale Beyle met officials from the IMF  Addis Ababa to discuss the fourth phase of the Somali pardon program.

On Sri Lanka, what is the IMF's response to Independent Expert on foreign debt and human rights, Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky, sayins that in Sri Lanka, there are concerns at the significant rise in the value added tax, given that the brunt of such taxes is often borne by the poorest?

More generally, what is the IMF's response to Bohoslavsky saying as to the IMF that "even though austerity can be a useful tool of administration against the squandering of resources, it is essential to keep in mind that austerity impacts the most vulnerable and marginalised"?

On crypto-currency what is the IMF's response to Marshall Islands Minister David Paul saying the country is moving forward with its plans. According to the post, Minister Paul will provide further details about the Marshall Islands’ crypto, the Sovereign, next week at the Invest: Asia 2019 conference?  Within months, the IMF began putting pressure on the Marshall Islands to not forego the U.S. dollar in favor of its own digital currency. The Fund issued a 58-page report in September 2018 and warned against the "potential costs arising from economic, reputational, AML/CFT, and governance risks" associated with the issuance of the Sovereign.

On the DR Congo, what is the IMF's knowledge of, and comment on, that all the big-name advisory banks are laying siege to the presidential palace in the hope of winning the contract to advise the DRC on its relations with the IMF?" Inner City Press also asked, again, for "any updates on Cameroon or Haiti or Yemen." Watch this site.

More here.

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