Skopje, 16 April 2005
PRESS RELEASE OF THE NBRM
Today, April 16, 2005, in the framework of the Spring Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank in Washington, D.C., the Macedonian delegation consisted of representatives of the National Bank of the Republic of Macedonia and the Ministry of Finance, headed by the Governor, Mr. Petar Goshev, and the State Secretary, Mr. Melaim Ademi, will meet with the Governor of the Central Bank of the Netherlands, Mr. Wellink, the Vice President in the World Bank for Europe and Central Asia, Mr. Shigeo Katsu, the Executive Director in the World Bank, Mr. Ad Melkert, the Director in the World Bank for the Republic of Macedonia, Ms. Orsalia Kalantzopoulos, and the Executive Vice President in the IFC, Mr. Assad Jabre.
Yesterday, besides the participation in the operations of the Dutch Constituency of the IMF and the World Bank, the Macedonian delegation had meetings with Mr. Deppler, Director of the IMF European Department and Ms. Schadler, Deputy Director of the IMF European Department, Mr. Jeroen Kremers, Executive Director in the IMF and Mr. Franek Rozwadowski, Head of the IMF Mission to Macedonia.
Topics for discussion at the meeting with Mr. Deppler and Ms. Schadler were the contents of the forthcoming reform-oriented multi-year arrangement with the IMF and the reasons behind the low rates of economic growth of the Republic of Macedonia given the many years of macroeconomic stability. Here, Mr. Deppler emphasized that the structural reforms are the main precondition for boosting the economic growth in the Republic of Macedonia and expressed the willingness of the IMF to support such reforms with a new arrangement.
At the meeting with the Macedonian delegation, Mr. Kremers emphasized his readiness and his maximum efforts to support the Republic of Macedonia in concluding the new arrangement with the IMF, as soon as possible.
The topic for discussion at the meeting with Mr. Rozwadowski was the progress in the preparations related to the completion of the negotiations and reaching mutual agreement on the new arrangement of the Republic of Macedonia with the IMF.
Governor's Office