In advance of Pakistan’s ninth IMF assessment, the country’s past and present finance ministers dispute on whether the country’s economy is still in the red (IMF).
Ishaq Dar, the country’s current finance minister, believes that the performance of the nation is satisfactory and ready for the IMF assessment, but Miftah Ismail, his predecessor, thinks that the default risk would not go away unless the IMF and other multilateral lenders come to the table.
The two discussed their opinions in separate interviews with broadcasters from the private media on Tuesday, according to The Dawn.
Dar claimed in his interview that the IMF considers the overall trend of a specific quarter. According to Samaa TV, this also entails the fulfilment of conditionalities and structural linkages.
Dar claims that Pakistan is attempting to provide the data that the IMF is requesting for the entire fiscal year.
According to Dar, the IMF is also inquiring as to how Pakistan plans to raise money for flood restoration. He claimed that it was unfair because the nation has not yet developed its financial strategy and is therefore unable to offer a current realistic picture.
When asked if the ninth and tenth reviews will be finished by January, Dar responded that the government was making preparations and that “we have to fulfil this duty in the next few days.”
Miftah Ismail, a former finance minister, claimed during an interview with Geo News that the IMF is the country’s last-resort lender and that the World Bank and Asian Development Bank agreed to grant money to Pakistan once the IMF entered the picture.
According to The Dawn, he reportedly said to journalist Shahzeb Khanzada, “But if that connection with the IMF breaks or a programme is halted, then other loans stop as well, and after that, you can’t save Pakistan.”
Ismail previously stated to Dawn that Pakistan’s default risk has increased once more to hazardous proportions and that there is no space for error. He stated that even after the December bonds are paid off, there would still be a default risk and that it is vital to take meaningful steps to reassure markets and lenders.
He said that Pakistan’s current account deficit has been the main issue with the country’s economy in a piece published in The Dawn.
In the 1950s, he claimed, Pakistan’s exports exceeded those of South Korea, and in the 1990s, “our exports exceeded those of Vietnam.”
“Today, Vietnam and South Korea export 18 and 6 times more than Pakistan, respectively. Thus, the narrative of our relative fall is both established and enduring. In this century, it has developed a sharper edge. He stated it is best to let the market decide the exchange rate in reference to the discussion surrounding rupee-dollar parity. (ANI)
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