Almaty, June 21, 2011. — The first tranche of the EurAsEC Anti-Crisis Fund (ACF) financial credit in the amount of US$ 800 million was disbursed to the Republic of Belarus by Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) today.
Five subsequent tranches in the amount of US$ 440 million each will be available to the Republic of Belarus during 2011-2013, upon the implementation of specific measures included in the Government’s Program which aims to stabilize the balance of payments and increase the competitiveness of Belarus’ economy. The program includes measures to reduce emission lending to the economy, to strengthen fiscal discipline and to replenish international reserves to the level that ensures economic security.
ACF Council approved the US $ 3 billion financial credit to the Republic of Belarus on June 4. EDB as the Manager of ACF resources and Belarus signed the Agreement on the provision of this financial credit to Belarus on June 9, and President Lukashenko approved this Agreement on June 15.
The credit is extended for 10 years which includes a three-year grace period, during which only interest payments will be made. Repayment of the principal starts from the second half of 2014.
Financial terms of the loan conform to the standard terms of financial loans as approved by the ACF Council for its middle-income member countries. The floating interest rate on the loan is based on Russia’s price of funding in the international markets (it currently stands at about 4.3% per annum) and will be reviewed every three months.
