Islamabad: International Monetary Fund (IMF) ke board ne Pakistan ke liye $7 billion ka 37-mahine ke lye Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program manzoor kar liya hai aur pehli qist taqreeban $1 billion ki foran adaa karne ko bhi green signal de diya hai.
Yeh agreement IMF aur Pakistan ke darmiyan July mein staff-level par tay paaya tha. IMF ki press release ke mutabiq, naya program Pakistan ke macroeconomic stability ko mazid mazboot karne, gahri structural challenges ko hal karne, aur mazid mazboot, inclusive aur resilient growth ke liye zaroori hai.
IMF ne kaha ke is program ke objectives ko poora karne ke liye Pakistan ke development aur bilateral partners ki strong financial support bhi ahem hogi.
Statement ke mutabiq, Pakistan ne 2023-24 ke Stand-by Arrangement (SBA) ke tehat achi policies aur unke implementation se apni economic stability ko behal kiya hai. FY24 mein growth 2.4% par wapas aayi hai, jo ke agriculture ke sector se supported thi, jab ke inflation bhi significantly kam hoke single digits tak aa gayi hai, jis me fiscal aur monetary policies ka ahem role raha hai.
Current account ko contain karne aur foreign exchange market ko stable rakhne se reserves buffers dobara build karne mein madad mili hai. Yeh disinflation aur domestic aur external conditions mein behtri ke sabab State Bank of Pakistan ne June se ab tak policy rate mein 450 basis points ka cut bhi kiya hai, jo ke FY25 ka tight budget support karta hai.
Lekin bawajood is taraqqi ke, Pakistan ke vulnerabilities aur structural challenges abhi bhi formidable hain. Statement mein kaha gaya ke 2023 ke 9-mahine ke SBA ke tehat jo stability hasil hui, uske bad Government ne in challenges ko address karne aur sustainable growth ke liye nayi koshishen shuru kar di hain.
Naye EFF-supported program ke key priorities mein yeh shamil hain:
(i) policy making ki credibility dobara hasil karna aur macroeconomic sustainability ko barqarar rakhna;
(ii) tax base ko barhana aur reforms ke zariye productivity aur competition ko mazid strong banana;
(iii) state-owned enterprises (SOEs) mein reforms lana aur public service aur energy sector ki viability ko behter banana; aur
(iv) climate resilience ko barhana.
Kal ek virtual Zoom session ke dauran, “High Level Private Sector Dialogue – CPEC-II and the Region” mein Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb ne kaha ke Pakistan IMF program ke tehat structural reforms karne ke liye committed hai.
Unhon ne kaha, Pakistan ko reforms agenda par qaim rehna hoga, chahe wo taxation, energy sector, state-owned enterprises ya privatization ka mamla ho. “Hum iss raah par qaim rahenge,” unka azam tha.
