The International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Executive Board has approved the 6th tranche for Pakistan, Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin said.
According to 24NewsHD TV channel, the IMF Executive Board met in Washington to take up Pakistan’s request for the completion of the sixth review and release of a $1 billion tranche under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF).
The finance minister took to social media to share the news. "I am pleased to announce that IMF Board has approved 6th tranche of their programme for Pakistan," Tarin tweeted.
https://twitter.com/shaukat_tarin/status/1488928059562545159
To meet another condition of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the government had successfully managed to get the State Bank (Amendment) Bill, 2021, cleared from the Upper House of Parliament - which was the last stumbling block in reviving the stalled programme.
Following the clearance of the bill, all prior conditions of the Fund had been fulfilled by Pakistan, including the approval of the mini-budget and SBP bill.
The SBP bill was passed with a majority of just one vote as 43 senators voted in favour of the government’s tabled bill while 42 senators voted against it.
Keeping in view the requests from Pakistan, the IMF had postponed its Executive Board meetings thrice this month.
The IMF board meeting was postponed last time from January 28 to February 2, 2022. The loan programme has been stalled since April 2021, hence, the sixth review will be completed after nine months.