Straughn: RST came at the right time

Given Barbados’ vulnerability to climatic shocks, Minister in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs Ryan Straughn, says the Resilience and Sustainability Trust, RST introduced by the International Monetary Fund came at the right time.

The RST – a major IMF lending tool complements the existing lending tool kit by providing longer-term, affordable financing to members to help them address structural challenges.

And one year on since its introduction, Mr. Straughn described the RST as a transformational gamer changer.

Mr. Straughn’s comments came during a discussion that formed part of the annual IMF/ World Bank meeting in Morocco titled, One Year into the RST: Stocktaking and the Way Forward

Mr. Straughn told the forum that in a post-COVID-19 environment, the fiscal space to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs, was already constrained.

He adds Barbados has been pushing for an unlocking of resources to assist.

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