Finance Minister Ishaq Dar is set to lead a high-ranking delegation to the US to take part in the Annual Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB), from April 10th to 16th.
The minister will be flanked by the Finance and Economic Affairs Division secretaries, and the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) governor while the delegation may present new proposals to the IMF and WB for getting some cash.
Sources privy to the matter have revealed that Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are set to discuss the possibility of combining the remaining 10th and 11th reviews of the $6.5 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program in the event that the pending 9th review is completed.
It is reported that the IMF program, signed in 2019, is set to expire on June 30, 2023. This deadline cannot be extended beyond the set guidelines.
The completion of the pending 9th Review was scheduled for December 2022, and the 10th Review was supposed to be initiated in February 2023. The 11th Review was planned to commence on May 3.
However, the delayed decision on the 9th Review will increase the cost of rectifying the situation.
