Malawi became the first low-income nation to receive financing from the International Monetary Fund under a new tool intended to help countries cope with global food price shocks.
The Washington-based institution agreed to lend the southern African nation $$88.3 million to address urgent balance of payments needs related to soaring food costs, it said in a statement. Annual food inflation has more than doubled to 34.5% since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
Malawi is among 48 countries the IMF has identified as worst affected by the most severe food crisis the world has experienced since the global financial crisis. About a fifth of its population is estimated to be facing acute food insecurity in the lean season from October through March, compared with 15% a year earlier, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification report.
The IMF introduced the food-shock window in September for countries that have urgent balance
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