DUSHANBE, March 30, 2010, Asia-Plus — The Ministry of Finance of Tajikistan has applied to the Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC) Anti-Crisis Fund for a $90 million loan for supporting the country’s budget, Finance Minister Safarali Najmiddinov said in an interview with Asia-Plus.
According to him, the Anti-Crisis Fund board is currently considering Tajikistan’s budget support loan application. The Tajik finance minister expressed confidence that the Anti-Crisis Fund would approve the loan and positive reply would be received within the next few days.
An agreement on the establishment of the anti-crisis fund was signed at the EAEC summit in Moscow in February 2009. The sides agreed to establish a joint anti-crisis fund of 10 billion U.S. dollars that will be used to support efforts to mitigate effects of the global financial and economic crisis.
The 2nd session of the EAEC Anti-Crisis Fund board that took place in Moscow last January considered and endorsed the procedure of providing loans from the Anti-Crisis Fund. By the board’s decision loans are allocated to support budget balance, improvement of parameters of balance of payments, improvement of conditions for entrepreneurial activity, mutual trade, and macroeconomic stability. The EAEC finance ministers agreed that loans would be provided to medium-income countries for 10 years with a five-year grace period.
The Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC) now groups Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. Uzbekistan joined EAEC in January 2006 but later in December 2008 Uzbekistan decided to temporarily suspend its membership
