International Monetary Fund Chief Praises Morocco’s Efforts to Combat Corruption

The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva, complimented Morocco on its efforts to fight corruption.

“The success of anti-corruption efforts contributes to the achievement of sustainable development and the improvement of citizens’ living standards, which requires a unified vision based on the participation of all citizens,” Georgieva underlined on the occasion of a joint conference organized on Thursday in Rabat by the IMF, the Ministry of Economy, Finance and Administration Reform and Bank Al-Maghrib on “Governance in Morocco”.

Georgieva also stressed the need to firmly engage in the fight against this phenomenon by strengthening the actions already carried out in this regard while “placing this battle at the heart of the government’s concerns.”

Within the IMF, “we calculated in 2016 the cost of corruption to society in terms of inefficient public spending that does not serve their objectives and we concluded that this significantly hinders economic progress,” noted the Head of the international financial institution, adding that governments must redouble their efforts to achieve these same objectives.

Furthermore, Georgieva recalled that her visit to Morocco is an opportunity to discuss preparations for the IMF and World Bank (WB) Annual Meetings scheduled for October 2021 in Marrakech, pointing out that this event will bring together presidents, parliamentarians, finance ministers and representatives of civil society.

For his part, the Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the IMF, Jihad Azour, indicated that the aim of the meeting is to discuss the issue of governance and its importance in achieving growth and sustainable development, an issue which, in his opinion, is of great importance in the Arab world and in Morocco in particular.

He went on to say that this day is also an opportunity to discuss priorities in terms of governance and the possibility for the IMF to integrate these priorities into its work and throughout the world, particularly in the context of the reforms undertaken by the countries of the region.