Beirut - (AFP) - The International Monetary Fund considered today, Wednesday, that most of the prior reforms that Lebanon is expected to approve in order to obtain financial support have not yet been implemented, warning of the "cost" of this delay on the country mired in an unprecedented economic crisis. .

At the end of a visit to Beirut, which included meetings with a number of officials, Ernesto Ramírez Rigo, who headed the Fund delegation, said in a statement, "Despite the urgent need to take measures to address the deep economic and social crisis in Lebanon, the progress in implementing the agreed reforms... It's still too slow."

In April, the Fund announced that it had reached a preliminary agreement with Lebanon on a $3 billion aid plan over four years. However, its implementation is linked to the government’s commitment to implementing prior reforms and the parliament’s approval of urgent draft laws, most notably the “Capital Control” law that restricts withdrawals and transfers of foreign currencies from banks, and the 2022 budget bill, in addition to the approval of legislation related to restructuring the banking sector and amending the banking secrecy law.

Rigaud considered that "most of the prior measures have not been implemented," despite the fact that they, along with other reforms, are "critical to start the recovery of the Lebanese economy."

And he warned that “delaying their implementation only leads to an increase in costs for the state and its population,” stressing that the completion of reforms “is necessary for the fund’s board of directors to consider a request for a financial program” to support Lebanon.

During its meetings, the fund delegation urged officials in Beirut to speed up the adoption of reforms before the presidential elections, according to the Minister of Economy in the caretaker government, Amin Salam, who met the delegation on Tuesday.

Salam said in remarks to Agence France-Presse on Wednesday that the delegation sent a message to "pay attention to the sensitivity of the time, and the need to pass the four required laws before entering the presidential elections."

He added, "The delegation was clear that once we approve it, we will be closer to a final agreement" with the fund.

The term of current President Michel Aoun ends on October 31, without agreeing yet on a candidate, which raises fears that the country will enter a phase of presidential vacuum.

The efforts of Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati to form a government have not borne fruit since the parliamentary elections that took place in mid-May, in a country whose system is based on sharing shares between the political and sectarian components.

Although Parliament is considering approving some reform bills, no final agreement has yet been reached on any of them. Last week, the session for approving the 2022 budget was postponed until early next week.

The prolonged economic crisis is considered the worst in Lebanon's history. It is accompanied by political paralysis that prevents taking measures to limit the deterioration and improve the quality of life of the population, more than eighty percent of whom live below the poverty line.