Pakistan gets first tranche of US$1bn from UAE

Dunya News

On Tuesday, Pakistan and UAE had signed an agreement for a US$3 billion loan to Islamabad.

KARACHI (Dunya News) – Pakistan on Thursday has received first tranche of US$1 billion financial support package from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

As per the details, Pakistan will receive another $2 billion in two separate instalments.

Pakistan’s reserves have appreciated to $14.257 billion as the State Bank of Pakistan s reserves now stands at $7.64 billion and commercial banks at $6.62 billion.

On Tuesday, Pakistan and UAE had signed an agreement for a US$3 billion loan to Islamabad. The rate of return for the loan is 3pc.

Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Director General of ADFD, and Tariq Bajwa, Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan had signed the agreement at the ADFD headquarters in Abu Dhabi. Moazzam Ahmad Khan, Ambassador of Pakistan to the UAE, Khalifa Al Qubaisi, Deputy Director General of ADFD, and other senior representatives of the two parties attended the signing ceremony.

The UAE in December last year had announced to provide $3 billion financial assistance to Pakistan after Saudi Arabia made a similar commitment to help Islamabad successfully overcome international payment crisis and to avoid a stringent International Monetary Fund (IMF) deal.

The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development has financed eight development projects in Pakistan with a total value of 1.5 billion AED, including 931 million AED in grants. The funds covered projects in sectors such as energy, health, education and roads.

In late October, Saudi Arabia announced that it would offer $3 billion to Pakistan in addition to another $3 billion to buying oil on deferred payments. It has already transferred $2 billion into the SBP account and the remaining $1 billion is likely to be deposited next month.

Prime Minister Imran Khan had also secured a package during his first official visit to China early November, but financial details have not disclosed.