Former finance minister Miftah Ismail has said that $6 billion in commitments from friendly countries are needed for a full agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
According to Geo News, Miftah recently said in an interview $3 billion out of the $6 billion external financing gap must be received by Pakistan before the IMF board meeting. He added that we have no choice but to fulfill these goals.
Pertinently, Pakistan needs assurances from bilateral creditors for $6 billion in additional loans or risk stalling the IMF bailout.
So far, Pakistan claims to have received $2 billion in assurances from Saudi Arabia and will get $1 billion from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this week, leaving a $3 billion gap. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar called Qatar’s finance minister on Monday to seek his country’s assistance in closing the financing gap.
Nonetheless, the lender’s Director for Middle East and Central Asia Department (MCD) Jihad Azour Wednesday expressed confidence that the staff-level agreement with Pakistan will be signed soon followed by the IMF Board’s approval.
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