ISLAMABAD: An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission will visit Pakistan from September 23 for a biannual review of the country’s economic performance under the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the $1.4 billion Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).
The mission, led by Iva Petrova, is expected to stay for nearly two weeks and will conduct the fourth review of the EFF and the third review of the RSF for the period ending June 30, 2026. According to media reports, technical discussions would begin at the State Bank of Pakistan, followed by meetings with government sectoral teams and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.
The review will focus on the government’s performance against fiscal and structural targets, including the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) ability to meet its first half-yearly revenue collection benchmark under the IMF programme.
The mission will also assess the impact of the provinces surrendering more than Rs1.035 trillion of their National Finance Commission (NFC) shares to the Centre during the current fiscal year for national security and water resources.
The provinces have also committed a separate Rs1.8 trillion cash surplus under the IMF programme. Pakistan has largely remained on track with fiscal and monetary targets, but significant challenges remain, including a major revenue shortfall and delays in economic governance reforms.
The government’s intervention in wheat and sugar commodity operations is also expected to come under discussion, as it is considered inconsistent with an IMF condition restricting government intervention in commodity markets. If the reviews are successfully completed, Pakistan could receive around $1 billion under the EFF and another $200 million under the RSF by November or early December this year.
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