Government officials visited Washington for discussions with the IMF in July but those meetings were a precursor to formal talks. Phillips said then that the issues raised were essentially upon two broad areas.

“ Tax Reform including the reform of Tax Administration and a clear-cut path to reform the system of waivers and incentives, including substantial reduction in the number and types of waivers; and the Reduction of the Public Sector Wage related expenditure, including, Pension Reform and a Programme of Public Sector Rationalization.”

The former government resumed a borrowing relationship with the IMF in 2010 but was unable to meet several of the targets under the Stand-by Agreement (SBA).