IMF Signs Off On $1.27bn Aid To Ireland

The International Monetary Fund gave out the next tranche of bailout funds to Ireland, amounting to $1.27bn (£808m, €950m), after it found the country was meeting the conditions of its €85bn (£71.8bn ) rescue deal.

The IMF approved the tenth disbursal on Monday and Ireland has received $27.79bn in bailout from the IMF thus far. Each disbursal is paid out only when the country meets pre-determined conditions. The IMF is one among three lenders managing Dublin's bailout.

Ireland has been persistent over the two-and-a-half years to control its deficit and improve its economy, said David Lipton, the acting chairman of IMF's executive board.

The Irish economy grew modestly in 2012, logging two straight years of growth, Reuters reported. Employment during the first quarter of 2013 rose 1% from the year ago period, but unemployment continues to remain high, at 13.7% of the workforce. In April, the IMF forecast Ireland's economy to grow 1.1% this year and 2.2% in 2014.

Inspectors from Ireland lenders - the 17-nation eurozone, the 27-nation EU, and the International Monetary Fund- said on May 9 the country was on track to complete its bailout at the end of 2013, but warned it needed to do more to address unemployment and bad debts, Reuters reported.

Earlier this month, Ireland agreed to a detailed inspection of loan books at its distressed banks to pacify the three lenders. Stress tests are scheduled for 2014. The EU and the IMF want Irish banks to obtain a clean chit before the end of the country's bailout this year.

Ireland was the second eurozone nation to be bailed out by the IMF in 2010, after Greece.

The leaders of the Group of Eight (G8) countries are in Northern Ireland this week. Aside from addressing the conflict in Syria, British Prime Minister David Cameron has maintained that as host of this year's summit he would ensure the focus would be on discussing a clampdown on global tax dodging by multinational corporations who hold assets in tax havens around the world.