BUENOS AIRES, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) — Argentine President Alberto Fernandez on Sunday said reaching an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over the country’s more than 44 billion U.S. dollars in foreign debt “is basically necessary to provide economic certainty.” In an interview with the daily Clarin, Fernandez said he was confident the South American country will reach an agreement with the IMF “as soon as possible.” “I have had many conversations recently with (managing director of the IMF) Kristalina Georgieva and I have the impression that she sees the difficulties that exist in Argentina better than anyone,” said the president. A new agreement with the IMF “clears up many doubts, which I do not have, but that some sectors of the economy do,” said Fernandez. “The Argentine economy was in intensive care and then on top of that we got the coronavirus. Everything became much more difficult,” he acknowledged, adding there are “signs of improvement.” An IMF mission is set to arrive in Buenos Aires on Tuesday to agree on a payment program for the 44.1 billion dollars Argentina owes the lender. Argentina’s economy could shrink by 10.5 percent this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.