Pakistan says IMF approves release of nearly $1.2B loan

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday approved the release of a long-stalled $1.17 billion tranche of its bailout package for cash-strapped Pakistan.

The development came after Islamabad agreed to fulfill some key IMF demands, including withdrawal of subsidies on electricity and petroleum, despite public outcry.

Finance Minister Miftah Ismail said the IMF Board has approved the “revival our EFF (Extended Fund Facility) program.”

“We should now be getting the 7th & 8th tranche of $1.17 billion,” he said on Twitter.

In 2019, the IMF agreed a $6 billion bailout package to prop up the South Asian nation’s sputtering economy.

The fund will now immediately disburse $1.17 billion to Pakistan and could provide up to $4 billion over the remainder of the current fiscal year, which began on July 1.

The assistance is seen as crucial for Pakistan, which is currently struggling to cope with massive financial and human losses caused by a devastating spell of rains and floods.

Latest official data shows nearly 1,150 people have been killed and some 33.4 million affected across the country since June in what officials have termed a “climate catastrophe.”

According to economists, Pakistan will need more loans and assistance from other countries and lenders to overcome the spiraling economic and humanitarian crises.