International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said she has had productive talks with National Bank Governor Antita Angelovska-Bezhoska after holding an online meeting.
“Productive call with North Macedonia’s National Bank Governor Angelovska Bezhoska. The National Bank plays a vital role in mitigating the impact of the crisis and ensuring economic and financial stability. Its professionalism and independence are essential,” Georgieva tweeted after the meeting held yesterday.
“The meeting emphasized the importance of strong and credible institutions, particularly in crisis times, when they have to do all that is necessary to preserve confidence and support households and businesses. It was also emphasized that professionalism and autonomy of the central bank are key prerequisites for the central bank to fulfill its mandate, including ensuring the overall stability of the financial system,” the National Bank said Friday in a press release
Governor Angelovska Bezhoska endorsed the IMF for all the support and partnership throughout the years. “It is of a critical importance for us that we have an international partner with strong integrity, professionalism and expertise that continuously enhances our capacity and helps us reinforce our role in the society”, stated Governor Angelovska Bezhoska.
In the context of the current corona crisis, Georgieva and Angelovska Bezhoska discussed the uncertainty and challenges for policy makers in the upcoming period.
“At the meeting, it was stressed that globally, the current context and the uncertainty about the duration and effects of the pandemic requires further vigilance and prudence. This also holds for the financial sector policies, where measures to reinforce financial system resilience should be in place. This was also discussed in the context of the necessity to be prudent in the dividend distribution policies, as an important step towards building buffers until the recovery is on a stronger footing,” said the press release.
At the end of the meeting, the National Bank said, it was concluded that the IMF and the National Bank will continue their strong collaboration, thus supporting the endeavors to deliver benefits for the economy and society and protect the public interest. In this respect, the voluntary participation of the National Bank in a pilot review of the IMF Central Bank Transparency Code was assessed as an important effort towards strengthening the institution’s transparency and integrity.
