Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb held a series of high-level bilateral meetings and strategic engagements on the sidelines of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4), currently underway in Seville, Spain.
These meetings were aimed at fostering deeper strategic cooperation with partner countries and institutions across areas such as development finance, trade, climate resilience, and institutional capacity-building, read a statement released by the Ministry of Finance on Thursday.
Aurangzeb, who is representing Pakistan in the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4), met with Eelco Heinen, Minister of Finance of the Netherlands, for a detailed bilateral exchange.
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As per the statement, the meeting focused on further strengthening the long-standing and cordial ties between the two countries, particularly in the domains of trade, development cooperation, climate resilience, and institutional capacity-building.
Both sides shared perspectives on enhancing economic engagement, technical collaboration, and the potential for deepening partnerships in areas such as blended finance, climate finance, and digital transformation.
The Pakistani side expressed keen interest in leveraging Dutch expertise in agri-tech, water management, and the digitization of public services.
During the meeting, the Dutch Finance Minister reaffirmed his country’s support for Pakistan’s structural reform agenda and emphasised the importance of policy continuity, transparency, and facilitation of investment flows.
Aurangzeb also held a detailed meeting with Axel van Trotsenburg, Senior Managing Director of the World Bank, on the sidelines of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development.
The minister appreciated the World Bank’s continued support for Pakistan’s development agenda and shared updates on the successful review of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program and ongoing reforms under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).
He also highlighted the launch of Pakistan’s National Green Taxonomy, developed with World Bank support, which aims to guide sustainable investments and is expected to be approved soon.
Aurangzeb welcomed the World Bank’s endorsement of the new 10-year Country Partnership Framework (CPF 2026–2035), which focuses on key areas including child stunting, learning poverty, climate resilience, fiscal space, decarbonization, and private investment.
In a separate meeting, the finance minister held in-depth discussions with Alvaro Lario, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a specialized UN agency focused on rural development and food system transformation.
The two sides reviewed the long-standing collaboration between Pakistan and IFAD.
Aurangzeb acknowledged IFAD’s ongoing support through six active projects in Pakistan.
The meeting covered a wide range of IFAD-supported initiatives in Pakistan, including policy support, vocational training, community infrastructure, access to finance, climate-smart agriculture, value chain development, and resilience against climate shocks.
Additionally, Aurangzeb met with John W.H. Denton AO, Secretary-General of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).
The two discussed avenues for enhanced cooperation in trade facilitation, SME development, investment promotion, and the role of the ICC in supporting Pakistan’s economic transformation.
Particular emphasis was placed on private sector engagement, international best practices, and institutional capacity building to unlock new opportunities for sustainable growth and inclusive development in Pakistan.
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