Miftah to hold talks with IMF as floods add to Pakistan’s economic woes

Finance minister Miftah Ismail, during the seminar Wednesday said that the flood has majorly destroyed the cash and food crops in Sindh and they had to take challenging decisions to save the country from bankruptcy, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

He said he would hold talks with the IMF in the backdrop of the flood situation.

Miftah gave the gory details of the country’s finances and said that the country was under a colossal debt of Rs44 Thousand Billion when their government was established and had only US$10.3 billion foreign exchange reserves.

He even said that Pakistan still has to pay US$21 billion of debt this year. There was a current account deficit of more than US$12 billion and a dire need of a total US$36 billion this year.

The finance minister further said that they knew they will have to take tough decisions when they came to power. Growth is not difficult but steady and exponential growth is needed.

Miftah said that the flood has ruined the cotton, sugarcane and rice crops very majorly but regardless of the devastation, payment of the debts will continue. The government has taken a loan from private banks at 15% interest. Rs70 billion was given for the flood victims.

Ismail said that on the orders of the premier, 300000 shelter tents were bought for the flood victims for US$ 10.2 billion. The production of electricity was doubled in the reign of Nawaz Sharif from 2013 to 2017.

He justified taking loans saying that the current account deficit makes them take loans from external sources.

In the last financial year, the imports cost US$80 billion whereas the exports paid off only US$30 billion. Around a million and two hundred thousand overseas Pakistanis send around US$39 billion in remittances, said Miftah.