(RTTNews) - The International Monetary Fund on Thursday said the Gambian economy had performed better than expected in 2009, boosted by the second consecutive year of strong growth in agriculture.

The global lender now expects Gambia’s economy to grow 4.5% to 5% this year , up from a 3.5% estimate it made earlier. Moreover, the growth could rise slightly in 2010, due to a partial recovery in tourism and remittances, it noted. However, downside risks remained to the outlook in 2010. Inflation is expected to remain low after falling considerably in 2009, the IMF said.

Meanwhile, the lender pointed out that the economy still faced a heavy debt burden. “Interest on government debt is expected to consume nearly 20 percent of government revenues in 2009, mostly in interest on domestic debt. In contrast to a slight reduction in domestic debt that was planned for in the 2009 budget, the spending overruns led to more debt and increased pressure on interest rates”, the IMF added.

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