ISLAMABAD: The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is scheduled to meet on Friday (May 9) to consider “Pakistan - first review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program, request for modification of performance criteria and request for an arrangement under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility.”
The board would consider the first review under the $7 billion EFF programme and a new arrangement of $1.3 billion under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). Upon approval from the Executive Board, Pakistan will have access to about $1 billion (SDR 760 million) under the EFF, bringing total disbursements under the program to about $2 billion.
In addition, the country would unlock the $1.3 billion under a new climate resilience loan program spanning 28 months.
IMF to proceed with Pakistan review despite India’s objections
An IMF team, led by Nathan Porter, held discussions during a February 24-March 14, 2025 mission to Karachi and Islamabad, and virtually thereafter, for the first review of Pakistan’s economic programme supported by the EFF and on a new arrangement under the IMF’s RSF.
On March 25, 2025, the Fund stated that Pakistani authorities and the IMF team had reached a staff-level agreement on a comprehensive programme endorsed by the federal and provincial governments that could be supported by a 37-month EFF in the amount equivalent to $7 billion.
The fund stated that the programme aims to capitalise on the hard-won macroeconomic stability achieved over the past year by furthering efforts to strengthen public finances, reduce inflation, rebuild external buffers and remove economic distortions to spur private sector led growth.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Comments