Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have entered the final stage of negotiations, with a Staff-Level Agreement (SLA) potentially paving the way for around $1.2 billion in fresh funding under two ongoing programs, sources in the Ministry of Finance told RBN.
The negotiations are scheduled to conclude on October 7, although the IMF could extend the talks if differences over outstanding issues remain unresolved.
Sources said the prospects of successfully completing the reviews remain positive, but the final outcome will depend on the IMF’s assessment of Pakistan’s economic performance and progress on its commitments under the programs.
If the talks conclude successfully, Pakistan and the IMF are expected to announce a Staff-Level Agreement. The reviews will subsequently be submitted to the IMF Executive Board for approval. The related funds would be released after the board completes the approval process.
The negotiations cover Pakistan’s fourth review under the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and third review under the $1.4 billion Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), which provides climate-related financing.
Successful completion of both reviews could unlock around $1.2 billion for Pakistan. This would include the fifth EFF installment and the next disbursement under the climate financing facility.
Pakistan has so far received around $4.6 billion from the IMF under the two programs, according to sources.
The conclusion of the current negotiations will determine whether the reviews move to the IMF Executive Board and when Pakistan can receive the next tranche of funding.
