ISLAMABAD, Jan 11 (APP): The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday completed the first review of Pakistan’s economic reform programme supported by its Stand-By Arrangement (SBA).
“The Board’s approval allows for an immediate disbursement of SDR 528 million (around US$ 700 million), bringing the total disbursements under the SBA to US$ 1.9 billion,” a Finance Ministry news release said.
The IMF’s nod follows the staff-level agreement reached between the Fund and Pakistan on November 15, 2023, emphasizing the nation’s commitment to implementing key reforms.
Earlier, the IMF’s Executive Board in mid July 2023 had approved the Stand-by Agreement (SBA) for US$ 3 billion for Pakistan.
The staff level agreement on SBA amounting to SDR 2,250 million (about $3 billion or 111 percent of Pakistan’s IMF quota) was reached during the last week of June, 2023 after the IMF staff team led by Nathan Porter held in person and virtual meetings with the Pakistani authorities to discuss a new financing engagement for the country under the arrangement.
On July 13, 2023, the Fund transferred US$1.2 billion to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) out of total $3 billion under the agreement.
The balance amount of $1.8 billion was to be provided after two reviews – one of which was held in November 2023 whereas other one is scheduled in February 2024.
