The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has released its schedule of meetings up to September 4, with Pakistan's name absent from the list once again. Despite this, the Finance Ministry remains optimistic about securing approval for the $7 billion bailout package from the IMF in September. According to sources, the government is actively working to secure a rollover of $12 billion in debt from China, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Additionally, Pakistan has reportedly requested another $1.2 billion loan from Saudi Arabia to cover a $2 billion financing gap. Pakistan already holds $5 billion in cash deposits from Saudi Arabia, $4 billion from China, and $3 billion from the UAE. Moreover, Pakistan faces an additional commercial debt burden of $4.5 billion, including obligations to China.

On August 23, Federal Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb had said that the IMF Executive Board would approve the new loan program in September. Speaking to media in Islamabad, he had mentioned that discussions were ongoing with the IMF every second day, and China, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates had also given a positive response. He added that the friendly countries would take the international lender into confidence through executive directors. The minister went on to say that Pakistan needed external financing of $2 billion for the current fiscal year and $3 billion during the next 37 months. This is the third time that the IMF Executive Board has excluded Pakistan from its meeting schedule, when earlier it was expected that the global lender would approve the country's $7 billion bailout loan programme by August end.

According to sources, Pakistan's name has not been included in the latest schedule of the IMF Executive Board meeting, which has been released through August 30. As per the last schedule issued on August 21, the IMF board would review applications from three countries, including Vietnam, between August 28 and 30. Pakistan's request for a new loan program was postponed until next month, further prolonging the country's wait for financial assistance. Sources indicated that the main reason for the delay was the non-timely rollover of a $12 billion loan from friendly countries. The IMF had set stringent conditions, requiring Pakistan to secure assurances of external financing before the executive board meeting.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan