’Considerable progress’ made in Pakistan talks, says IMF

Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have made “considerable progress” in discussions on the third review of the country’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme, IMF mission chief Iva Petrova said on Wednesday, adding that talks will continue in the coming days to further assess the impact of recent global developments on the economy.

In a statement, she said that the IMF mission and the Pakistani authorities held discussions on the third review of the 37-month Extended Arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the second review of the 28-month arrangement under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).

“While considerable progress was made in the discussions, these will continue in the coming days, including to more fully assess the impact of recent global developments on Pakistan’s economy and the EFF-supported program,” the IMF chief said.

She further said that program implementation under the EFF remained broadly “aligned with the authorities’ commitments” through end-February 2026, and considerable progress was made in the discussions on policies ahead.

“These included sustaining the fiscal consolidation to strengthen public finances; maintaining a sufficiently tight monetary policy to ensure inflation remains durably within the State Bank of Pakistan’s target range; and advancing reforms to improve the viability of the energy sector.”

“Particular attention was paid to deepening structural reforms, given the authorities’ emphasis on accelerating growth, alongside efforts to strengthen social protection and rebuild health and education spending. These discussions are ongoing,” the statement said.

The IMF team arrived in Pakistan on February 26 and began discussions on March 2.

However, later, on March 4, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said that the delegation had cut short its visit, and left Islamabad on March 3, citing security concerns, and was in Istanbul and that he was in contact with its members.

Meanwhile, in her statement today, the IMF chief said, “The authorities have also made good progress in the implementation of their reform agenda to strengthen climate resilience, including through the completion of reform measures under the RSF.

“Discussions also covered the impact of the conflict in the Middle East on Pakistan’s economic outlook, the balance of payments, and external financing needs amid volatile and rising energy prices and tighter global financial conditions.

She said that the IMF team and the authorities will continue these discussions with a view to concluding them in the coming days.