The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has asked the government to raise more revenues and pay greater attention to outstanding structural reforms, especially regarding the state-owned enterprises, to put the economy on a sound footing.
A visiting delegation of the fund led by Harald Finger, IMF’s mission chief for Pakistan, held detailed meetings with senior officials of the Ministry of Finance and Federal Board of Revenue on Monday as they entered the last leg of their weeklong engagements. The finance secretary and the FBR chairman led the official side. The talks will now enter the policy area where Finance Minister Asad Umar is expected to lead the government’s side.
Informed sources said the IMF staff mission had expressed reservations over the revenue measures of the supplementary budget. They argued that these measures were not enough to keep the fiscal deficit within the target of 5.1 per cent.
The sources said the mission viewed that dependence on provincial cash surpluses worth Rs286 billion and some additional subsidy elements not incorporated in the revised budgetary projections could cause slippages. On the external sector also, the IMF wanted the government to keep an eye on rising international oil prices and global economic conditions that are not encouraging for exports. The sources said the government was relying heavily on its engagements with some “friends” in the hope that they could provide reasonable breathing space for the very short term and help push any approach to the IMF past its 100 days mark.
