MINSK — A plan to raise public sector wages by a third ahead of presidential elections has no economic basis and contravenes its agreement with the International Monetary Fund, an IMF representative said Wednesday. “In the framework of the [IMF] program, a certain increase in wages and pension was expected. But such a significant hike, undoubtedly, does not meet our agreements,” said Natalya Kolyadina, IMF representative in Belarus.
The pay hikes would cost an additional 7 trillion Belarussian rubles ($2.3 billion) and double the expected budget deficit to 3 percent of gross domestic product this year.
(Reuters)