IMF returns to Pakistan for crucial $7 bn bailout review
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is set to return to Pakistan on September 23 for a crucial review of its $7 billion bailout programme, with the outcome likely to determine the release of the next tranche and shape Islamabad’s economic policy in the months ahead. The newspaper said official reports indicate that only a few of more than three dozen governance-related targets for January-June 2026 had been met. Dawn reported that revenue shortfalls, commodity-market interventions and delays in economic governance reforms remain among the issues under scrutiny.
The visit is expected to begin with technical discussions at the State Bank of Pakistan, followed by meetings with government sectoral teams and an inaugural meeting with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, according to official sources cited by Dawn. IMF resident representative for Pakistan Mahir Binici, however, said in July that the country’s performance under the 2024 EFF had been “strong so far”, according to a press release issued by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute and cited by Dawn. The IMF delegation will examine fiscal and monetary policies, growth prospects, external finances and risks, as well as Pakistan’s implementation of programme commitments. A key focus will be the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) preparedness to meet its first half-yearly revenue collection structural benchmark under an IMF programme.