The Minister of Finance Sosten Gwengwe says the government is working round the clock to find a lasting solution to the economic challenges the country is facing.

Gwengwe was speaking during a presser in Lilongwe. He said among other options, that the government is continuing negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a new Extended Credit Facility.

This comes hot on the heels of media reports that the IMF has closed its doors on Malawi due to high levels of debt that the fund says is unsustainable.

According to Gwengwe, the government is also engaging the country’s various creditors for a sound debt retirement plan.

IMF staff had been due in the southern African nation this week for talks on a four-year Extended Credit Facility.

Two years ago, President Lazarus Chakwera canceled an IMF program agreed by his predecessor to better align it with the country’s development strategy.

Malawi needs IMF funding to help alleviate a foreign-exchange shortage that’s spawned a fuel crisis in the impoverished nation.

The paucity of foreign currency forced the central bank to devalue the kwacha by 25% in May. Inflation has surged to 24.6%, from 11.5% at the start of the year.

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