Shehbaz tells Georgieva that Pakistan met all responsibilities under IMF deal's 9th review
Business
Says releasing funds to stablise economy, provide relief to masses
PARIS (Dunya News) – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday assured IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva of fulfilling all the requirements under the stalled loan programme, saying releasing the withheld tranche would bring economic stability to Pakistan and provide relief to the people.
He made these remarks during a meeting with the IMF chief on the sidelines of the ‘Summit for New Global Financing Pact’ in the French capital as Pakistan is trying to rescue the IMF deal set to expire on June 30.
Shehbaz noted that Islamabad had met all the conditions/responsibilities required for the 9th review and a swift disbursement of funds would greatly boost the steps taken by the government to stabilise the economy.
During the meeting, the IMF managing director informed the prime minister of about the process related to the final approval of the 9th review by the executive board.
The meeting comes after it was earlier reported that the government had requested a meeting between Shehbaz and Georgieva.
A day before this request, it had emerged that the ongoing talks between the two sides had failed, meaning that the country would no more get any money from the world’s top lender as the current programme expires on the 30th of this month.
In this connection, the finance ministry tried to convince the IMF by explaining Pakistan’s position on different reservations and conditions, the process led by Finance Minister Ishaq failed to produce the desired results.
The prime minister is in Paris along with other world leaders to discuss ways and means to address a long list of issues.
French President Emmanuel Macron is hosting the summit on Thursday and Friday in Paris to pin down a roadmap for easing the debt burdens of low-income countries while freeing up more funds for climate financing.
Read more: Shehbaz, other world leaders in Paris to give impetus for new global finance agenda
The "Summit for a New Global Financial Pact" hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron aims to forge a top-level consensus on how to progress a number of initiatives currently struggling in bodies like the G20, COP, IMF, World Bank and United Nations.
It will try to create multifaceted roadmaps that can be used over the next 18-24 months, ranging from debt relief to climate finance. Many of the topics on the agenda take up suggestions from a group of developing countries, led by Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, dubbed the 'Bridgetown Initiative'.
"The international financial system is no longer adapted to face financing challenges the world faces today so this is an opportunity to get everyone around the table," said a senior French diplomat.
Read more: Bridgetown Initiative: Macron hosts summit to reform multilateral financial institutions
In a significant development, the Financial Times reported on Thursday that the World Bank will allow countries hit by disasters to pause repayments on loans to the multilateral lender.
World Bank President Ajay Banga will unveil measures, including the pause on repayments and embedding catastrophe insurance into new loans in a speech in Paris on Thursday, the newspaper reported.
The lender will also allow countries to "quickly redirect" a portion of their funds to responding to an emergency when a crisis occurs, the FT said.
