Pakistan plans to borrow $23 billion next fiscal year to aid growth: Report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has planned to borrow a minimum of $23 billion in the next fiscal year, including the rollover of a bilateral debt of $12 billion, to finance its development plans and meet its external financing requirement which will keep the cash-strapped country’s foreign and economic policies dependent on global financial institutions like the IMF, according to a media report on Thursday.
Budget documents for fiscal year 2024-25 showed that Pakistan would borrow at least $23.2 billion, or Rs 5.9 trillion, which did not include any loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), The Express Tribune newspaper reported, adding that the International Monetary Fund’s loan will be for balance of payments support.
Out of the $23 billion, the government has included $20 billion in budget documents. It has not made the rollover of $3 billion by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) part of federal books as it is also meant for balance of payments support.
Details showed that Pakistan would take $19 billion in loans for budget financing and building its foreign exchange reserves. The amount appears colossal, which will keep the country’s foreign and economic policies dependent on the IMF, the World Bank, Saudi Arabia, China, the UAE and the Islamic Development Bank.
These nations and international creditors are now dictating their terms due to their unending dependency on them. There was hope that the international credit rating agencies would improve Pakistan’s junk rating under the $3 billion IMF’s standby arrangement.
However, political and economic vulnerabilities prevented them from improving Pakistan’s standing.