KARACHI: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is preparing to discuss Pakistan‘s budget plans for the coming financial year, as part of a long-awaited bailout tranche from the lender for the cash-strapped nation, the IMF’s country mission chief told Reuters on Thursday.
Negotiations over key budget targets such as the fiscal deficit are one of the last hurdles before the IMF approves a staff-level agreement to release $1.1 billion in funding, which has been delayed since November, that is crucial for Pakistan to resolve an acute balance of payments crisis.
The finance ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters request for a comment.
On Thursday, Finance Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar reiterated that Pakistan has already complied with all the prior actions for the 9th review with the IMF.
A successful staff level agreement (SLA) for the 9th review, which has been pending since November, will unlock the $1.1 billion in financing.
The funding is a part of a $6.5 billion bailout package the IMF approved in 2019, which is due to end in June, prior to the budget.
In response to a question about the possibility of combining the 9th and 10th reviews in light of the imminent end of the latest programme, Nathan Porter, IMF mission chief to Pakistan, said that the current baseline is to proceed sequentially with reviews.
“In all IMF programs, the authorities issue a letter of intent associated with the last review outlining their policy intentions for the period after the program,” Porter said.
Negotiations over key budget targets such as the fiscal deficit are one of the last hurdles before the IMF approves a staff-level agreement to release $1.1 billion in funding, which has been delayed since November, that is crucial for Pakistan to resolve an acute balance of payments crisis.
The finance ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters request for a comment.
On Thursday, Finance Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar reiterated that Pakistan has already complied with all the prior actions for the 9th review with the IMF.
A successful staff level agreement (SLA) for the 9th review, which has been pending since November, will unlock the $1.1 billion in financing.
The funding is a part of a $6.5 billion bailout package the IMF approved in 2019, which is due to end in June, prior to the budget.
In response to a question about the possibility of combining the 9th and 10th reviews in light of the imminent end of the latest programme, Nathan Porter, IMF mission chief to Pakistan, said that the current baseline is to proceed sequentially with reviews.
“In all IMF programs, the authorities issue a letter of intent associated with the last review outlining their policy intentions for the period after the program,” Porter said.