ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Defense Khawaja Asif has alleged that Imran Khan’s government took heavy loans from international agencies including IMF to run the system and to strengthen his party’s government.
However, talking to a private TV channel, he added that continuing the IMF programme by Shehbaz Sharif-led coalition government would help improve the economy.
His comments came amid reports that despite terming the meeting as ‘positive’, Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) failed to strike any breakthrough in their talks held the other day, as no side announced any date for mission’s visit to Islamabad.
The meeting came as the IMF had withheld the release of $1.1 billion loan tranche due to disagreement over the exchange rate policies, power tariff and a major gap in the fiscal framework. The gross official foreign exchange reserves slipped to a nine-year low of $4.5 billion last week – enough to finance three weeks of imports.
Also read: No breakthrough in Pakistan-IMF talks: Report
Khawaja Asif said heavy rains and floods situation in 2022 destroyed homes, crops and livelihoods of people and Pakistan had to suffer a loss of thirty billion dollars.
He said the people are still suffering due to weak economic policies of PTI Chairman. He said Imran’s regime did nothing for Pakistan during the period of last four years.
Interestingly, the World Bank in its report released yesterday pegged Pakistan’s GDP growth at 2% in 2023, which stood at 6% last year when Imran Khan-led coalition government was in power.
Also read: World Bank pegs Pakistan’s GDP growth at 2%
