LUSAKA, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved the fourth review of Zambia's reforms, paving the way for the immediate disbursement of 184 million U.S. dollars to support its economic recovery, according to the Zambian finance ministry.

The new approval brings the total disbursements under Zambia's 38-month extended credit facility arrangement to 1.3 billion dollars, the Ministry of Finance and National Planning said in a statement issued Tuesday.

Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane thanked the IMF Executive Board for approving the fourth review of the program.

"The board approval and the assessment of our debt as sustainable is a clear testimony of the confidence that the IMF and the international community have in the steady progress that Zambia is making towards the ultimate success of our home-grown economic transformation agenda," the statement quoted the minister as saying.

Musokotwane said the government is committed to continuing the path of success to stabilize the economy and implement reforms under a challenging environment marked by the impact of a severe drought.

The government will continue with fiscal consolidation and stands ready to further tighten monetary policy to cut inflation and speed up governance and structural reforms, he said.

According to him, the IMF approval came at a time when Zambia needs financing to sustain the progressive interventions tailored by the government to respond to the 2023/2024 drought, which has severely impacted hydro-dependent electricity generation, agriculture production, and operational incomes for some small-scale and larger businesses.

The IMF board approval will help strengthen investor confidence and accelerate foreign direct investment inflows in view of the assessment of Zambia's debt as sustainable, Musokotwane said.

According to the statement, Zambia's extended credit facility arrangement was approved in August 2022 for 1.3 billion dollars, but the amount was augmented with an additional 30 percent of 385.7 million dollars in July 2024, following the severe drought, increasing the access to a level of about 1.7 billion dollars. ■