Our trysts with IMF

WE had our first tryst with the IMF soon after the first martial law imposed by Gen Ayub in 1958. Following this engagement, our relationship with the IMF has been like an unhappy but lasting marriage. We have contracted 22 programmes with the Fund. The present programme that started in July 2023 is the 23rd. Can our economy survive without IMF support? To answer this question, it is important to review the history of IMF’s lending commitments to Pakistan. For 14 of these programmes, we were not successful in drawing the entire amount committed by the IMF because of a breach in policy steps that Pakistani authorities had committed themselves to taking. For eight programmes, Pakistan was successful in drawing the committed amount. Most of these were short-term programmes such as the present Stand-by Arrangement.