- “If need be, we will ‘tighten our belt’ and rise again,” says Prime Minister Shehbaz.
- “Government is able to navigate challenges ‘best way’.”
- The Prime Minister congratulated the people of Turkey on the re-election of President Erdogan.
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif expressed hope that the loan agreement between Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is likely to be finalized this month.
Giving an exclusive interview to the Turkish news agency. Anadoluthe Prime Minister said that the ninth review by The IMF All terms and conditions will be matched, he added, “Hopefully, we will have some good news this month”.
He further said that Pakistan has fulfilled all the requirements of the IMF as pre-emptive measures.
On contingency plans in case the IMF talks fail, the Prime Minister emphasized the resilience and resilience of the Pakistani nation.
He said the people of Pakistan had faced challenges in the past, and would “tighten their belts” and rise again if needed. The prime minister asserted that his government had been able to meet the challenges of “fraternal and friendly countries” in “the best possible manner with the help of the people of Pakistan”.
Talking about the bilateral relations between Pakistan and Turkey, the Prime Minister described them as “one soul, two hearts that beat together”.
He congratulated the people of Turkey on the re-election of President Erdogan, calling it a “wonderful development”.
Prime Minister Shehbaz said that Pakistan and Turkey will promote cooperation in the near future by focusing on areas like biogas, solar energy and hydropower to increase trade and promote mutual development.
Last week, Minister of State for Finance Dr. Ayesha Ghospasha ruled out the possibility of considering any other option — Plan B — if Pakistan fails to persuade the IMF to revive the stalled loan program. Is, News Reported
He said, “Let me clarify that there was no other option under Plan B in case of non-revival of the fund program which we are considering as the government completes the pending ninth review of the IMF programme. determined to restore.”
Dr. Pasha also revealed that the Washington-based lender is still sticking to its estimate of a financing gap of $6 billion for the current fiscal year, compared to Islamabad’s estimate of $4.5 billion, based on multilateral and bilateral aid. Creditors have given assurances to the IMF.
With the IMF’s ongoing program due to end on June 30, time is limited to complete the pending ninth review under the $6.5 billion Expanded Fund Facility (EFF).
If a staff-level agreement is reached by broad consensus on three controversial issues, including external financing, the budgetary framework, and the free market exchange rate, the program will be reinstated, otherwise the program will be doomed to failure.
However, sources say that Pakistan will have no choice but to take another IMF program in the next financial year considering the external debt repayments of $25 billion.
This excludes the current account deficit and if projected in the range of $7-8 billion for the next financial year, the total external financing requirements would increase to $32-33 billion in 2023-24.