Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif expressed his gratitude for the investment of $ 40 billion in Pakistan under the World Bank, appealing to welcome development.
According to a statement published by the Prime Minister’s office wing, the Prime Minister met with a delegation of executive directors of the World Bank, where he welcomed his visit to Pakistan.
He underlined the long -standing partnership between the World Bank and Pakistan, which extends over seven decades. Many important projects supported by the World Bank have played a key role in the development of the country.
The Prime Minister said that Pakistan had greatly benefited from its partnership with the World Bank, especially during the 2022 floods when the World Bank provided substantial aid to affected people. As part of the recent national partnership manager, the World Bank should invest $ 40 billion in Pakistan, which is a positive development.
He also explained that 20 billion dollars will be invested in various projects related to health, education, young people and other social sectors, marking the start of a new era of progress.
In addition, under IFC, $ 20 billion will be invested in the private sector of Pakistan, which should stimulate the country’s economy. He expressed his appreciation of the World Bank’s confidence in government policies.
Shahbaz Sharif also mentioned that the Pakistan institutional and economic reform program is growing rapidly. The country’s economy evolves in the right direction towards development. Although new progress is necessary for sustainable economic growth, it has credited the team’s efforts behind these improvements.
He also said that exports and shipments increased, that interest rates are decreasing, leading to more investment in the production sector and that transparency is introduced into systems to control corruption. The government favors the digitization of reforms of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), while reforms in the energy sector aim to ensure an uninterrupted electricity supply and to reduce losses.
The Prime Minister noted that the creation of the SFIC (Special Investment Facilitation Council) provided an attractive environment for investment, operating in a single system which involves the participation of all stakeholders. The government has prioritized investments and the loans.
The World Bank’s delegation praised the Pakistan in progress program, recognizing the positive results obtained, which is encouraging. The delegation also congratulated government reforms in energy, industry and exports, privatization, taxation and other sectors.
It should be mentioned that the World Bank delegation, made up of nine executive directors, is visiting Pakistan. They oversee the portfolios of various countries of the World Bank and are in Pakistan to discuss economic development projects and investments.
The meeting brought together the federal ministers Ahsan Iqbal, Ahad Khan Cheema, Sardar Owais Khan Laghari, Dr Musaddiq Malik, the state ministers Alvez Malik, Shezda Fatima Khawaja, the coordinator of Prime Minister Romaza Khursshid Alam, Senate Nafisa Shah, Representative of the Prime Minister for the Polio Ayesha Raza Farooq program and other senior officials.
Meanwhile, Pakistan began preparations to obtain another $ 1.5 billion loan program at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the negotiations planned at the latest this month.
Two IMF delegations should visit Pakistan to carry out an economic examination for the new loan program and the next tranche of the 7 billion dollars program already approved. Total discussions will cover a combined amount of $ 2.5 billion.
According to sources, an IMF delegation will go to Pakistan on February 24 to negotiate the $ 1.5 billion loan. This new loan program would have aimed to treat the damage caused by climate change.
