IMF deputy chief Dan Katz visits El Salvador as the fund keeps its 4.5% growth forecast
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The IMF's first deputy managing director met President Bukele on 3 November and said growth keeps beating expectations; pension and public administration reforms remain the main pending items.
Dan Katz, first deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, met President Nayib Bukele in San Salvador on 3 November at the end of a visit to the country, EFE reported. In a statement released by the fund, Katz said the president had reaffirmed his commitment to "prudent macroeconomic policies" and to deepening the reforms of the IMF-supported programme.
"Growth continues to exceed expectations and has remained robust despite recent shocks," Katz said, adding that sustained improvements in security and the implementation of the programme were "boosting confidence and helping to raise living standards". He said attracting private investment and making use of new technologies would be key to reaching the country's growth potential.
The IMF projects growth of 4.5% for 2026, after 3.9% in 2025 and 2.6% in 2024, according to the figures cited by EFE. The visit takes place under the $1.4 billion arrangement agreed in December 2024. The fund completed the second and third reviews of the programme in October, releasing a disbursement of about $138 million, Diario El Mundo reported.
The programme foresees a fiscal adjustment of 3.5 percentage points of GDP over three years from 2025, with the aim of bringing public debt, which closed last year at 87.6% of GDP, down to 80.1% by 2031. Katz told El Mundo that fiscal consolidation and progress on reforms, in particular of the pension system and the public administration, are key to keeping debt on a downward path. The government has committed to a pension reform in June 2027.