Pakistan PM Imran Khan criticized by Punjab Governor for 'handing over everything to IMF'

With the International Monetary Fund (IMF) consenting to revive the $6 billion loan to Pakistan, Governor of Punjab Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar hit out at the Imran Khan administration for 'handing over everything' to the IMF for the loan. Addressing an event in London, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader lamented over the loss of Pakistan’s sovereignty to IMF’s stringent conditions saying that the $6 billion aid was not 'charity,' but a loan.

"The International Monetary Fund will give us $6 billion in total over the next three years. It will give us $2 billion every year. They have secured everything in writing from us. And this is a loan. This is not charity, it is a loan. They have taken everything from us by giving us $6 billion, which will be given in three years," Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar said.

For the revival of the $6 billion bailout package, Islamabad has had to swallow a bitter pill and agree to take steps worth PKR 800 billion by cutting expenditures and enforcing more taxes. The steps are expected to result in a major inflation jump in the country. The expected inflation comes amid the already mounting fuel prices and subsequent protests by the Opposition and citizens in the country.

IMF reaches agreement for $6 billion loan

On November 22, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that it has reached an agreement with Pakistan to revive its $6 billion funding programme for the nation. In an official statement, the international financial institution shared that a 'staff-level agreement' had been reached with Pakistani authorities over the policies and reforms required to complete the sixth review under the $6 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF). It is important to mention that the EFF has been “in recess” since April. The $6 billion funding programme dates back to 2019 but was halted this year due to reform issues in Pakistan.

The revival of the programme is subject to “finalization of the National Socio-Economic Registry (NSER) update, parliamentary adoption of the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) Act Amendments, notification of all pending quarterly power tariff adjustments, and payment of the first tranche of outstanding arrears to independent power producers (IPPs) to unlock lower capacity payments fixed in renegotiated power purchase agreements (PPAs),” the IMF had stated.