Aurangzeb reviews IMF programme progress

WASHINGTON:

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb held a series of meetings with the senior management of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to review Pakistan's macroeconomic performance and progress under the Extended Fund Facility and Resilience and Sustainability Facility, according to an official statement on Thursday.

The minister met First Deputy Managing Director Dan Katz, Deputy Managing Director Nigel Clarke, Middle East and Central Asia Director Jihad Azour and Mission Chief for Pakistan Iva Petrova.

Aurangzeb highlighted Pakistan's improved fiscal and external balances, achievement of revenue targets, stronger foreign exchange reserves, record remittances and an improved current account position.

Discussions covered tax and energy reforms, privatisation, tariff rationalisation, debt management, diversification of financing sources and Pakistan's return to international capital markets.

Both sides also exchanged views on human capital development, women's economic participation, demographic challenges, technology-led growth and private sector-led, export-oriented development.

The finance minister thanked the Fund for recognising Pakistan's programme ownership and reform progress, while reaffirming the government's commitment to fiscal discipline, policy credibility, structural reforms and long-term economic transformation.