By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Executive Board will meet on April 29 to finalise its last review of Pakistan’s $3 billion Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), despite the country’s absence from the Fund’s public calendar.
The review, which was initially scheduled for April 29, was mysteriously removed from the IMF’s public calendar, sparking speculation in Pakistan that the country may have been excluded from the board’s agenda, potentially delaying the release of the final tranche of $1.1 billion.
However, Fund officials dismissed these speculations, stating that the IMF does not operate in this manner and that a meeting might be delayed due to scheduling complications, but this typically has no impact on a program after a Staff-Level Agreement (SLA).
According to the IMF’s event calendar, Pakistan is notably absent from the list of countries whose programs will be reviewed at the 10:00 am meeting scheduled on April 29.
In March, IMF staff and Pakistani authorities reached an SLA for the second and final review, which was subsequently forwarded to the board for final approval. Upon approval, Pakistan would have access to SDR 828 million (approximately $1.1 billion).
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, expressed optimism that the country is on track to secure a new loan from the IMF and that macroeconomic factors are shifting in its favor.
“We are confident that the IMF will approve the final tranche of $1.1 billion under the SBA,” Aurangzeb said in an interview with The National daily.
Pakistan is reportedly seeking a $6 billion IMF loan, but Aurangzeb said that figure was more of a “guesstimate”, with the loan’s final details to be determined when an IMF mission visits Islamabad next month.
The country needs at least three years of support to carry out a reform agenda across several sectors, including taxation and energy.
Aurangzeb also pointed to several bright spots in the Pakistani economy, including its burgeoning tech sector, which has grown from “literally nowhere” a few years ago to about $3.4 billion today.
He expressed optimism that the sector could reach $4.5 billion or $5 billion in the next year.
The minister also stated that the rupee has finally stabilized and that rampant inflation is on track to drop to single-digit levels by the end of next year.
Copyright © 2021 Independent Pakistan | All rights reserved
