By KYIV. Dec 20 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Thanks to the coherent cooperation with international partners, in 2023, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine attracted more than $39 billion of external financing, compared to $32.1 billion for the entire last year, Minister of Finance of Ukraine Serhiy Marchenko said.
“By the end of this year, donor assistance will reach about $42.3 billion,” he was quoted as saying in a press release from the Ministry of Finance on Wednesday after a meeting the day before with finance ministers and central bank governors of the G7 countries, the European Union, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.
Marchenko also said that Ukraine’s need for external financing for 2024 has been reduced from $41 billion to $37.3 billion due to measures to maximize State Budget revenues, activate the domestic debt market and other measures.
The minister of finance said that in 2024, the key tasks are the military campaign and social support. And while defense and security are financed at the expense of domestic budget revenues, Ukraine is counting on the help of international partners to meet the needs of the social sphere.
The desired volume of external financing named by Marchenko in 2024, including grants, was confirmed in the IMF materials based on the results of the second review of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). “Support from official donors will remain the principal source of deficit financing next year,” the Fund said.
The IMF said that net domestic bond financing, while smaller, will remain an important source of financing, amounting to $3.8 billion under the baseline.
“Net domestic market issuance and the use of unencumbered deposits also serves as a critical shock absorber and is easier to ramp up quickly relative to external financing. However, risks related to this financing plan are significant, and it will be important that committed external financing be provided on a timely basis,” the IMF said.
According to the IMF materials, $8.5 billion is expected from the United States, $2 billion from Japan, $1 billion from the UK, and another $20.4 billion from the EU, Canada and Japan.
Marchenko previously said that Ukraine expects to receive EUR 18 billion from the EU budget in 2024 within the framework of the discussed Ukraine Facility with a total volume of EUR 50 billion for 2024-2027.
