UAE and IMF officials discuss economy and financial developments

The latest meeting comes as country's economy rebounds from Covid-19 pandemic

Younis Al Khoori, undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance during a meeting with the officials of the International Monetary Fund, in Abu Dhabi. Photo: Ministry of Finance

UAE Ministry of Finance officials on Friday met a delegation from the International Monetary Fund, to discuss the country’s economy and financial performance.

The progress made on the UAE-wide fiscal framework, and fiscal co-ordination between the ministry and the UAE’s seven emirates as well as corporate tax, general revenue and expenditure, green finance, debt and issuance, were discussed during the meeting.

"The Ministry of Finance is keen to make the most of the IMF’s experts’ recommendations regarding the UAE’s financial policies, and to move forward in improving government financial work mechanisms in line with the best international standards,” Younis Al Khoori, undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance said.

The UAE economy made a strong rebound from the coronavirus pandemic-induced slowdown last year and the pace of economic momentum has continued to improve this year on the back of government initiatives and higher oil prices.

The country's economic output, which expanded 3.8 per cent in 2021, is expected to grow 5.4 per cent and 4.2 per cent in 2022 and 2023, respectively, according to the latest projections from the UAE Central Bank.

Emirates NBD recently raised its UAE growth forecast to 7 per cent in 2022, due to a higher estimate for the energy industry's output and the “robust growth” of its non-oil sector, setting up the country for its fastest annual expansion since 2011, when output grew by 6.9 per cent.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank projects growth of 6.2 per cent, also driven by strong real non-oil gross domestic product growth.

The monetary and fiscal support from the government has also helped in accelerating the growth momentum. The Emirates introduced economic stimulus worth Dh388 billion ($105.72bn) since the onset of the pandemic. These packages include the central bank's Dh50bn Targeted Economic Support Scheme (Tess) to boost liquidity in the financial and banking sector and other measures.

The UAE Cabinet last month approved the country’s federal budget for 2023 to 2026 with a total expenditure of Dh252.3bn and estimated revenue of Dh255.7bn.