TAHIR AMIN

ISLAMABAD: The talks between International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Pakistani authorities for the second review of the USD 7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme and the first review of the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) reportedly remained inconclusive.

The Fund mission, led by Iva Petrova, Pakistan’s Mission Chief at the IMF, started talks with Pakistani authorities on September 25 that continued till October 8; however official sources revealed that the staff level agreement was yet to be reached.

Till filing of this report no statement was issued by the government, as well as, by the IMF.

Sources said that IMF had shared the draft Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP) with Ministry of Finance. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb reportedly said that once the MEFP is signed, a staff-level agreement will be reached between Pakistan and the IMF. He added that Pakistan has met all targets set by the IMF as part of the ongoing program.

The current round of talks between Pakistan and the IMF wad scheduled to conclude on Wednesday with the finance minister describing the negotiations as “on track.” He noted that consensus has been reached on major targets with the IMF. The finance minister had made these remarks during an informal conversation with the media, emphasising that Pakistan remains committed to fulfilling its obligations under the IMF program.