Aurangzeb expects more than 1bn dollars from IMF under climate finance
Business
The minister said structural reforms were required to make lasting improvements to country's economy
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Thursday Pakistan was likely to get $1 billion to $1.5 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under climate finance.
“An IMF mission will visit Pakistan on Feb 24 for discussion on climate fund,” the minister told journalists after an event.
The second IMF review mission would visit Pakistan in March, he added.
He said Pakistan was efficiently fulfilling all conditions of IMF and there was current account deficit in one month and it was surplus in seven months.
The minister said structural reforms were required to make lasting improvements to country’s economy.
BUSINESS COUNCIL MEETING
Earlier, the finance minister said the country was heading in the right economic direction with macroeconomic stability achieved.
He made the remarks while addressing an event organised by the Pakistan Retail Business Council in the federal capital.
The minister stressed the need for structural reforms to avoid boom and bust cycles and achieve sustainable and inclusive growth. He highlighted that reforms were being made in various areas such as energy, taxation, and public finance.
Talking about reforms in taxation, the minister said real transformation was under way with a focus on utilising the latest technology to bring transparency and plug loopholes.
He underscored the need to restore public trust in the tax authority.
Calling massive tax burden on the salaried class an unsustainable solution, he said other sectors such as retail, wholesale, real estate and agriculture, should come forward and pay taxes fairly.
Aurangzeb stated that efforts were being made to reduce government expenditure, adding that provincial governments were working on agricultural taxes.
He said the reduction in policy rate would benefit investors and the business community. “The country cannot afford unnecessary privileges,” he said.
