Dar says won't lead Pakistani delegation to US
Business
The minister was scheduled to attend spring meetings of the IMF and the WB
ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) - Finance and Revenue Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday confirmed the cancellation of his official visit to the US, saying the delegation would proceed without him.
Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Sardar Ayaz Sadiq also will not leave for the US.
Sources told Dunya News that the minister won't lead the delegation to the US in the backdrop of prevailing political crisis in the county. Dar was also scheduled to attend the annual spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) besides conducting sideline meetings with the officials of the IMF and the US Treasury department.
However, led by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Finance Tariq Bajwa, a technical delegation comprising officials of finance and economic affairs divisions and the State Bank of Pakistan's governor will proceed to participate in the annual meetings of the global financial institutions from April 10 to 16.
Sources told Dunya News that the delegates might present fresh proposals before the international financial institutions for providing dollar inflows.
They said Pakistan and the IMF could also discuss the possibility of combining the remaining 10th and 11th reviews under the $6.5 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme in case the pending 9th Review is completed.
Signed in 2019, the IMF programme is going to expire on June 30, 2023, and under the set guidelines, the programme cannot be extended beyond the deadline.
The IMF is seeking verifications from the bilateral friends of Pakistan, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar, if they would provide additional assistance of $6 billion till the end of June 2023.
The coalition government has already claimed that it has fulfilled all toughest requirements set by the Fund to release $1.1bn tranche.
