ISLAMABAD, May 24 — An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission and Pakistan have made significant progress towards reaching a staff-level agreement for an extended fund facility, the global lender said today.
The IMF has opened discussions with Pakistan on a new loan programme after Islamabad last month completed a short-term US$3 billion programme, which helped stave off a sovereign debt default.
An IMF team, led by mission chief Nathan Porter, concluded discussions with the authorities yesterday after arriving in Pakistan on May 13, the lender said in a statement.
“The mission and the authorities will continue policy discussions virtually over the coming days aiming to finalise discussions, including the financial support needed to underpin the authorities’ reform efforts from the IMF and Pakistan’s bilateral and multilateral partners,” Porter said.
Pakistan is likely to seek at least US$6 billion under the new programme and request additional financing from the IMF under the Resilience and Sustainability Trust.
Ahead of the discussions, the IMF had warned that downside risks for the Pakistani economy remained exceptionally high.
“The authorities’ reform programme aims to move Pakistan from economic stabilization to strong, inclusive, and resilient growth,” Porter added. — Reuters
