On Monday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) granted Russia an aid relief in the amount of $17.55 billion as part of general support for all countries affected by the pandemic, which follows from the decision of the IMF Board of Governors.
The IMF approved an aid worth approximately $650 billion to supplement liquidity resources to the recipients. The general distribution of SDRs came into effect on 23 August 2021. Aid is transferred to IMF member countries in proportion to their existing fund quotas.
Most of this aid was received by the United States – 17.4%, or 113.1 billion dollars. Russia’s quota is 2.7%, or $17.6 billion. Overall, about 42% of this aid, or $275 billion, went to emerging markets and developing countries, including low-income countries.
Ukraine’s quota is 0.4%, the country has received one of the smallest loans – 2.6 billion dollars. Venezuela has a double quota – the country received over $ 5 billion.
The quota is calculated depending on the country’s contribution to the fund, the number of votes of the country in the fund.
According to IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, the aid was a historic decision, as it is “the largest SDR allocation in the history of the organization and a stimulus for the global economy during an unprecedented crisis.”
