IMF Backs $386 Million of Support for Georgia Amid Global Risks

The International Monetary Fund approved a two-year standby arrangement and a standby credit facility for a combined $386 million to support Georgia’s economy during the next two years.

“Economic performance in 2011 was stronger than envisaged, inflation dropped to single digits, government debt declined, and international reserves increased,” the fund said in a statement from Washington. “However, the unsettled global economic and financial conditions have increased risks.”

Georgia’s $11.6 billion economy grew a preliminary 7 percent in 2011, according to the statistics office. The Black Sea nation’s government is targeting 8 percent growth in 2012, President Mikheil Saakashvili said March 19.