The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said that the ninth review of the $1.2 billion bailout programme will be completed once Pakistan completes necessary prerequisites. The Pakistani government will also have to satisfy the global lender about the policies that it wants to roll out, including the budget for the current fiscal year—a demand that finance ministry officials claim was tantamount to changing goalposts. “The IMF continues to work with the Pakistani authorities to bring the ninth review to a conclusion once the necessary financing is in place and the agreement is finalized,” stated Nathan Porter, the IMF Mission Chief to Pakistan. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar had claimed that Pakistan met all the prior conditions agreed for reaching a staff-level agreement and there was no reason for holding back the agreement. But Nathan’s statement negated what Pakistani authorities have been claiming since February 9, when face-to-face talks ended inconclusively, reports The Express Tribune.
