ISLAMABAD, June 24, 2023: The efforts of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif may bear fruit as Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are said to be nearing a final deal which is expected to be formally announced shortly.
Sources report that in the ninth review, obstacles between Pakistan and the IMF have been overcome, and the programme’s rehabilitation has been achieved.
This progress is accredited to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s meetings and engagements with IMF’s Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. The negotiations between the Ministry of Finance and the IMF team continued for three days, and the new draft was finalised on Saturday by the IMF team and the ministry.
The meeting during the Global Financing Summit in Paris was held a week before the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) expires on June 30.
Under EFF’s 9th review, concluded earlier this year, Pakistan has been trying to secure $1.1 billion of the $6.5 billion funding delayed since November.
The finalisation of the new draft clears the way for the completion of the ninth review if there are no further technical difficulties or problems between the IMF and Pakistan.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recent visit to France where he attended the summit meeting of the new global financial agreement and met many world leaders, may have contributed to this development.