ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is likely to sign a staff-level deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) tomorrow (Tuesday), as the country has fulfilled 90% of the conditions set by the international lending agency.
In a significant move, Pakistan has abolished the scheme that allowed the annual inflow of 0.1 million dollars into the country. Additionally, the interest rate has been raised by one percent, with the basic interest rate increasing from 21% to 22%, according to a local TV report.
The memorandum of economic and financial policies, outlining Pakistan’s commitments has been submitted to the IMF for thorough analysis by its experts.
Earlier, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar stated that Pakistan has successfully met all the necessary conditions of the IMF, clearing the way for the signing of the staff-level agreement. He also highlighted that the government has made several amendments to the 2023-24 budget in a final attempt to secure the stalled rescue package with the IMF.
Pakistan Meets IMF’s New Demands
In the new fiscal year, the federal government would raise a further 215 billion rupees in new taxes and cut 85 billion rupees in spending as per IMF demands. It has also taken several other steps to appease the lending agency.
It is to be noted that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had met with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on the sidelines of the Global Financing Summit in Paris last week, and the meeting proved a revival point for the stalled talks to reach an agreement.
