The government has decided to approach International Monetary Fund to deal with the prevalent financial crisis, according to Finance Minister Asad Umar.
Talks with IMF will start immediately as Prime Minister Imran Khan has given a go-ahead to do so, said the finance minister in a video.
The country is going through a tough time, which has been left behind by the previous government, he said. “We have to find a way to get out of this difficult situation.”
A Pakistani delegation led by the finance minister is scheduled to attend the annual meeting of IMF and World Bank in Bali, Indonesia this week, sources said.
The delegation will leave for Bali on Monday, to attend the meeting taking place on the Indonesian island from October 12 to 14, sources within the Ministry of Finance said.
A day earlier, reports surfaced stating that the government is in need of US$9 billion to fulfil the country’s fiscal needs. It was also said that the government wanted to approach IMF for a bailout package but did not want to name it so.
In an interview with Arab News in September, the finance minister said that they were not in a rush to approach the IMF for a bailout.
“Pakistan is not in an emergency situation that requires it to rush to the IMF to seek a bailout,” the finance minister had said during the interview.
“We have neither stopped imports nor imposed financial sanctions,” he continued.
However, the finance minister emphasised, “We need to take well-measured decisions. As a situation emerges, we take steps to manage it. We don’t want to take decisions in emergency.”
