It's important for Ukraine not to rest - Lipton

He noted that the purpose of his visit to Ukraine was to get an update on the economic situation in Ukraine and the progress of reforms. 

"I came at the time when we are preparing the next World Economic Outlook - our fresh assessment of the global economy, which is very relevant for Ukraine. We also discussed the progress of reform program, supported by the IMF. There have been some delays in this program. At the same time, it's a critical moment for Ukraine to move forward with the reform agenda," Lipton said.

According to him, the government, state-owned enterprises were being improved, land reform was underway, and the cleaning of the banking system continued. "If all these things move forward, including fulfilling the commitment on anti-corruption court, Ukraine has good prospects for more rapidly growing economy, and seeing living standards converge to advanced economies," Lipton said.

At the same time, he noted that Ukraine was "way behind" in convergence process if compared with many of its neighbors. "It's important not to rest, because growth is positive and because global recovery makes it easier. Ukraine needs to press ahead to improve the situation in the future," Lipton said.

According to him, the focus of this review is on pension reform, and on measures to speed up privatization and ensure concrete results in anticorruption efforts. He said that it was equally important that the fiscal and energy sector policies remain consistent with program commitments.

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