President Barrow governance, rule of law help improve business climate

By Pa Modou Cham

The Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Tao Zhang has extol President Barrow´s commitment  to transparency, strong governance and the rule of law, which has helped to improve the business climate and boost investor confidence.

He made this remark yesterday after completing a successful visit to the country for more update in our economic recovery.

“I wish to thank President Adama Barrow, Finance Minister Mambury Njie, and Central Bank Governor Bakary Jammeh for our constructive and substantive discussions. I encouraged continued progress with the constitutional and judicial review process, the transitional justice reform agenda and emphasized the need to publish the Janneh Commission’s report expeditiously, to accelerate the recovery of stolen assets,¨ he said.

In his talks with the Gambian authorities, he welcomed the credible turnaround in macroeconomic performance and the great strides toward fiscal probity.

He further encouraged the authorities to consolidate these gains through strengthened revenue mobilization, improved Treasury management, and expenditure prioritization and restraint.

Zhang explained that creditor assurances of debt relief, continued fiscal prudence, and commitment to the reform of state-owned enterprises would be needed for transition to an IMF financial arrangement under the Extended Credit Facility.

He stated that he met with Parliamentarians to discuss strengthening their oversight function with development and diplomatic partners to discuss donor coordination, given The Gambia’s intensive use of donor funding and capacity development resources.

The IMF deputy boss visited a number of sites that are playing a pivotal role in The Gambia’s efforts to deepen its outward orientation and strengthen its regional ties, notably, the Port of Banjul, which is seeking to expand and help reinvigorate The Gambia’s role in regional trade, Radville Farms, a private horticultural farm and large employer engaged in agricultural exports, and the recently completed Senegambia Bridge, connecting the northern and southern parts of The Gambia and Senegal and a vital link opening-up the subregion to the Cairo-Lagos trade corridor.

He went further to visit The Gambia Organisation for the Visually Impaired which aims to train and integrate the visually impaired into Gambian Society. ¨I was impressed by the determination and resilience of the organization’s members, a symbol of the strength of The Gambia and its aspiration to prosperity,¨” he added.