Talks between the Lebanese government and the International Monetary Fund are moving in the right direction and have made important progress, Lebanese Deputy Prime Minister Saadeh al-Shami told the National News Agency (NNA)on Tuesday. The International Monetary Fund said in February it would remain “closely engaged” with Lebanon’s authorities to help the crisis-ravaged country formulate an economic reform programme. Lebanon’s financial system unravelled in late 2019 under the weight of huge public debts, slicing more than 90% off the local currency’s value and plunging a majority of the popul…