LUSAKA, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Zambian government on Saturday dispelled media reports that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has closed its resident office in the southern African nation.
In a statement, Chileshe Kandeta, a spokesperson of the Zambian Ministry of Finance, said the office has not been closed although the IMF representative in Zambia Alfredo Baldini has been recalled for deployment elsewhere.
"First and foremost, our relationship with the Fund is healthy and intact and the IMF Resident Office in Zambia will remain operational beyond the tour of duty of Mr. Baldini, who has been recalled by the IMF for deployment," the spokesperson said in the statement.
According to the statement, the IMF has communicated to the Zambian government that a new representative will be sent to Zambia.
The Zambian government has been seeking ways to resolve the country's debt problem which has reached distress levels. An IMF bailout package believed to be around 1.3 billion U.S. dollars is one of its planned resolutions, but the talks for the bailout plan have been suspended by the international lender due to concern over Zambia's debt situation.
