As the economic crisis is deepening in Pakistan, all eyes are set on the IMF deal, which is subject to undue delay and uncertainty.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is insisting on three demands to move towards a staff-level agreement, including closing the gap between the interbank and open market exchange rates of the foreign exchange, a revised budget framework for the previous and current fiscal years. including providing and arranging external financing. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has comforted the nation as usual and said that the country has suffered due to the previous government’s breach of promise, the country has faced the worst restrictions in the past, even then it came out of difficulties and the current difficult times will pass soon. The Finance Minister’s address to the officials of the Lahore and Faisalabad Chambers of Commerce and Industry at the FBR headquarters shows that everything is in place for the 9th review of the IMF.

The news of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s telephone conversation with the head of the IMF for about an hour has also come out, the topic of which can be nothing but the quick recovery of the IMF program in the difficulties faced by Pakistan.

Although the IMF does not comment on the country’s politics, the news of Reuters shows that the IMF mission chief for Pakistan, Nathan Porter, referring to the political stability of Pakistan, expressed hope that the constitution and law  should be adhered to and  a peaceful way forward will be found for current crisis in Pakistan.

According to the head of the financial institution’s Pakistani mission, the IMF is in touch with Pakistani officials for the board meeting and is also assessing internal politics. Internal politics is a subject in which external institutions should not in principle be interested, however, the party that lends to the other party should be satisfied with various aspects including its stability, working methods and strong prospects of repaying the loan as it is important to keep in mind.

In the way Pakistan’s internal situation has been going for many years and in the current situation, it is not possible for the lending party to ignore the important factor of internal stability. In this regard, it is the responsibility of all, including the government, opposition and civil society circles, to play a positive role in the country’s stability. This role can be played only by facilitating the atmosphere of understanding.

There are many examples of this type in the past, including the case of former Azad Kashmir president Sardar Abdul Qayyum adopting “shuttle diplomacy” to pave the way for negotiation in the past.  The current economic situation is reflected in the monthly economic outlook report issued by the Ministry of Finance, which shows the possibility of improvement in crops, reduction in the prices of petroleum products, reduction of pressure on local prices, and inflation in the country. It is reported that the wave will continue, the inflation rate will be 34 to 36 percent in May, and the budget deficit will increase by 11.7 percent.

Encouragingly, investors have been buoyed by the encouraging statement from government circles and the head of the IMF Pakistan, which was reflected in the bullish trend in the stock market on both days of the week.

The solution to the critical juncture in which the country is currently standing is not to increase tension, but to reduce it. Consensus on a comprehensive plan of action through coordination and understanding on the rule of law is the need of the hour.

Keeping in front of the difficult economic situation, the preparation of the budget for the next financial year is going on.

The coalition government is trying to ensure that the coming budget is people- and business-friendly, in which the Govt has decided to supervise the measures for relief. Briefing will be taken on proposals for salaries, ongoing expenditure, subsidies, development budget, agriculture, IT sector.

Yesterday,  the meeting held on the budget proposals regarding the industrial sector has reiterated that relief to the people and economic development will be given priority in the budget and the Govt will ensure that proposals from the industrial sector are made part of the budget.  It said that the government will further reduce the cost of production by providing cheap energy to industries.

All unnecessary obstacles in the way of increasing production of export industries will be removed, credit will be provided to small scale industries on easy terms. The meeting said that the previous government deliberately stopped investment and industrial development in the country, broke the agreement with the IMF, which affected 22 crore people, especially the industries and caused economic damage to the country in these testing times.

 Well-known industrialists and investors from all sectors participated in the meeting through video link, who gave useful suggestions to increase the country’s exports.  The Prime Minister directed Advisor Cheema to finalize the proposals given in the meeting and prepare them for inclusion in the budget. The development, prosperity and peace and tranquility of any country depends on political stability, strong economy and good governance.

Meanwhile, the financial experts said that the government should work day and night for this and even not shy from taking difficult decisions, but there is still a lot to be done to ease the life of the common man.

Published in The Daily National Courier, June, 03 2023

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