Pakistan to get $1.17b under agreement with IMF

Islamabad: Pakistan and International Monetary Fund (IMF) have reached an agreement under which Pakistan will soon receive one point one seven billion dollars.

This was stated by the Minister for Finance and Revenue Miftah Ismail on his official Twitter handle. The federal minister said that the agreement has been inked to complete the 7th and 8th reviews of Pakistan's Extended Fund Facility.

He thanked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, his fellow ministers, and the financial team for their help and efforts in reaching the agreement with IMF.

Pakistan and IMF have reached an agreement. We will soon receive $1.17b as the combined 7th & 8th tranche. I want to thank the PM, my fellow ministers, secretaries and especially the finance division for their help and efforts in obtaining this agreement. https://t.co/376sCHLc1Y

— Miftah Ismail (@MiftahIsmail) July 14, 2022

The IMF in an official statement said: “The immediate priority is to stabilize the economy through the steadfast implementation of the recently approved budget for FY23, continued adherence to a market-determined exchange rate, and a proactive and prudent monetary policy. It is important to expand social safety to protect the most vulnerable, and accelerate structural reforms including to improve the performance of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and governance”.

The IMF team also thanked the Pakistani authorities, private sector, and development partners for fruitful discussions and cooperation during the discussions.

It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan has raised electricity tariffs and almost doubled diesel pump prices over the past two months to win IMF’s accord, even as inflation has accelerated to a 13-year-high.