Pakistan, IMF begin talks today on next USD 1.2 billion release
Pakistan has already received about USD 4.8 billion from its current IMF arrangements, with the latest review set to determine whether another USD 1.2 billion can be released.
Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund are beginning formal talks today to assess the country’s progress under its ongoing lending programmes, setting the stage for another potential disbursement as Islamabad works to meet the Fund’s targets.
The discussions will cover the fourth review of Pakistan’s USD 7 billion Extended Fund Facility and the third review of its Resilience and Sustainability Facility, which carries access of about USD 1.4 billion. The combined value of the two arrangements is therefore about USD 8.4 billion.
Pakistan has so far received roughly USD 4.8 billion under the two programmes. The latest major inflow came in May, when the IMF approved about USD 1.1 billion under the EFF and USD 220 million under the RSF. The State Bank subsequently received around USD 1.3 billion.
The upcoming review could unlock another roughly USD 1.2 billion, comprising about USD 1 billion from the EFF and USD 200 million from the RSF, if Pakistan meets the agreed conditions.
The talks are expected to examine fiscal performance, foreign exchange reserves, monetary and external-sector developments, energy-sector reforms and progress on structural measures. Governance reforms are also expected to remain an important part of the discussions.
With about USD 4.8 billion already disbursed, successful completion of the latest reviews would take total IMF funding received under the two current arrangements to roughly USD 6 billion.
