Pakistan said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) wanted “friendly” countries to meet their financial commitments before lenders signed off on a $6.5 billion rescue package. Pakistani Finance Minister Ishaq Dar told the upper house of the country’s parliament that there was a delay in concluding the talks because of the IMF situation.
IMF-Pakistan agreement: A participant stands near the IMF logo. (Reuters)
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Several countries have pledged to support Pakistan during the IMF review, and the country’s finance minister added that the IMF “requires them to actually fulfill and deliver on those commitments.”
The minister said the Pakistani government has fulfilled all IMF demands as the country has taken tough measures including raising taxes, energy prices and interest rates. While the finance minister did not name the countries that have made pledges to Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and China have helped the country in recent months by rolling over debt repayments, providing dollar deposits and oil credits.
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Earlier this month, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China disbursed $500 million to Pakistan, the first installment of a $1.3 billion loan.
It also comes amid political uncertainty in the country, as support for the government led by Prime Minister Sheikh Baz Sharif has fallen as they back Imran Khan while blaming the prime minister for the economic crisis. Still, the IMF did not signal any delay in resuming the bailout program due to political uncertainty. Shehbaz Sharif said earlier this week, “We have accepted all the conditions, very tough conditions set by the IMF.”