The next tranche of the IMF bailout program for Ukraine will be postponed because the parliament falls behind the adoption of necessary reforms before the summer holidays, Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman told Bloomberg Monday.
According to Groysman, the pension reform is on schedule and steps are being taken to create an anti-corruption court, while a bill on land reform will not be submitted on time. This will delay the payment of the 1 bn 900mn dollar fifth tranche out of the total 17.5bn dollar loan.
Groysman assured that his government remains committed to the implementation of the program of cooperation with the IMF. Although the land reform will not have time to pass before the summer holidays, it may be adopted before the end of the year.
"We are working on reforms, and the fifth tranche will arrive," the prime minister said.
He stressed that reforms are needed by Ukraine rather than by the IMF, and the Fund's bailout program needs to be fully implemented.
The payment of the fifth tranche was first planned for June or July, the agency recalls.
Bloomberg notes that populists in parliament oppose the lifting on the farmland sale ban by arguing that the authorities and entrepreneurs will deceive farmers and snatch territory.
The President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko discussed the cooperation between Kyiv and the IMF during his visit to Washington on June 20.
The IMF allocated the previous 1bn dollar tranche to Ukraine in April.