ISLAMABAD: An International Monetary Fund mission is expected to visit Pakistan this month to discuss a new programme, IMF said on Sunday ahead of Islamabad beginning its annual budget-making process for the next financial year.
Pakistan completed a short-term 3 billion dollar programme in April, which helped stave off sovereign default, but the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has emphasized the need for a fresh, longer-term loan programme.
IMF said that a mission is likely to visit Pakistan in May to discuss the FY2025 budget, policies, and reforms under a potential new programme for the welfare of all Pakistanis, according to media reports.
Pakistan’s financial year runs from July to June and its budget for fiscal year 2025, the first by Shehbaz Sharif’s government, has to be presented before Jun 30.
The lender agency did not specify the dates of the visit, nor the size or duration of the programme.
The IMF statement said that accelerating reforms now is more important than the size of the programme, which will be guided by the package of reform and balance of payments needs.
Pakistan Averts Default Risk
Pakistan narrowly averted default last summer, and its $350 billion economy has stabilized after the completion of the last IMF programme, with inflation coming down to around 17% in April from a record high of 38% last May.
Islamabad is still dealing with a high fiscal shortfall and while it has controlled its external account deficit through import control mechanisms, it has come at the expense of stagnating growth, which is likely to be around 2% this year compared to negative growth last year.
