Approval of IMF Loan Program for Pakistan Further Delayed

Islamabad: The approval of a $7 billion loan program for Pakistan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has faced additional delays. The IMF Executive Board has released its calendar for September, revealing that meetings scheduled for September 9 and 13 will not include Pakistan’s agenda. Instead, the board will address cases from Bhutan on September 9 and Norway on September 13.
The staff-level agreement between Pakistan and the IMF was reached on July 12. Sources indicate that Pakistan is still encountering difficulties in addressing its external financing gap. It is expected that Pakistan’s agenda will be included once preconditions are met.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the federal government remains optimistic about fulfilling all IMF conditions. The Finance Minister has stated that they are in an advanced stage of closing the external financing gap and anticipates that the loan program will be approved by the IMF within this month.