The International Monetary Fund (IMF) review mission concluded its visit to Islamabad on Monday after expressing satisfaction with Pakistan’s economic performance, but also warning of downside risks and delays in agreed fiscal and structural targets, Geo News reported. The mission, led by Iva Petrova, met with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and senior officials from the Finance Division, the State Bank of Pakistan and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) before departing for Turkey, where discussions on the third review of Pakistan’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement and the second review of the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) will continue virtually.
According to Geo News, IMF officials welcomed Islamabad’s efforts to rebuild foreign exchange reserves, strengthen fiscal discipline and maintain macroeconomic stability, but flagged concerns over persistent FBR revenue shortfalls, delays in external financing plans, and outstanding legislative amendments related to state‑owned enterprises and sovereign wealth fund laws. The delegation emphasized that without continued structural reforms, Pakistan’s growth trajectory cannot be sustained, urging quicker progress on tax reform, energy sector changes and legal frameworks governing statutory bodies.
Finance Minister Aurangzeb told the IMF mission that macroeconomic and fiscal stability is gradually improving, citing ongoing measures to rightsized the federal government, enhance tax administration and support an export‑led growth strategy. He outlined plans to abolish tens of thousands of federal positions to cut expenditures and noted that recent reforms had helped Pakistan respond to flood‑related challenges during the fiscal year by maintaining fiscal buffers. The IMF mission acknowledged these efforts and agreed that further virtual discussions will be held to monitor Pakistan’s progress on key targets, including FBR performance, fiscal outlook and structural reform commitments, Geo News added.