The International Monetary Fund (IMF) reached new lending deals with two African governments within two days last week. Its staff agreed a 36-month Extended Credit Facility worth about $1.47 billion with Zambia on 9 October, a day after a 38-month programme of about $203 million with Niger; both still need approval by the IMF board. Zambia’s previous $1.7 billion programme expired in January, and the IMF said Lusaka would reverse temporary fuel tax relief and cut non-priority capital spending. The deals should support reserves and investor confidence, but in Zambia they will pass more of the oil shock on to consumers.
Sources
- International Monetary Fund (Niger): https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2026/10/08/pr26328-imf-staff-completes-the-2026-iv-consultation-and-reaches-staff-level-agreement-with-niger
- Bloomberg: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-10-09/zambia-imf-reach-staff-level-agreement-for-1-5-billion-program
- Reuters via CNBC Africa: https://www.cnbcafrica.com/2026/imf-reaches-staff-level-agreement-with-zambia-on-new-credit-facility
- Zambia Monitor: https://www.zambiamonitor.com/imf-reaches-staff-level-agreement-on-new-1-47-billion-programme-for-zambia/