Economic reforms supported by IMF deal to increase growth in Pakistan, says ADB

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday said that the economic reform agenda supported by the three-year International Monetary Fund (IMF) Extended Fund Facility (EFF) was projected to accelerate growth and ease inflation in Pakistan. In its Asian Development Outlook report for September, the Manila-based lending agency noted that growth in Pakistan had rebounded to 2.4 per cent in the fiscal year 2023-24, adding that the Fund’s previous short-term $3bn loan, which concluded in April, helped with economic stability in the country. Pakis­tan and the IMF reached a three-year, $7 billion aid package deal in July, with the new programme, as stated by the report, to catalyse “significant international financial support” for the underlying economic stabilisation and reform programme.