Summary IMF official confirmed that the consultations for second review will be held outside Pakistan.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – A mission of International Monetary Fund (IMF) has refused to visit Pakistan due to security concerns.
During a bi-weekly press briefing, Bill Murray from the Communications Department at the International Monetary Fund confirmed that the consultations for second review will be held outside Pakistan.
Responding to a question, Murray said “We have made the decision to hold the consultations for the second review of our current program in Pakistan outside the country. We remain fully committed to the IMF program in Pakistan and look forward to holding future meetings inside the country as the security situation permits. In terms of venue, I'm kind of disinclined to get into details here, but we expect a comprehensive meeting with the authorities around February 1st.”
Last month, Pakistan received $554 million dollars as a second tranche of its $6.7 billion bailout loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The Washington-based lender approved the extended fund facility (EFF) in September to help the struggling nuclear-armed country achieve economic reforms, particularly in its troubled energy sector.
The IMF made an initial payment of $540 million, and in November fund officials said during a monitoring visit that Pakistan was "broadly on track" with reforms.
"Pakistan received the second tranche from IMF under the ongoing EFF on December 23," a spokesman for the State Bank of Pakistan (central bank) said in a statement.
The release of the instalment will also bolster the bank s declining foreign exchange reserves.
Cash-strapped Pakistan, plagued by a bloody homegrown Taliban insurgency, is battling to get its shaky economy back on track and solve a chronic energy crisis that cripples industry.
Announcing the approval of the funds on Thursday, the IMF s deputy managing director and acting chair Nemat Shafik warned that Pakistan must continue its reforms for the economy to recover, in particular to improve tax collection.
