Islamabad: Pakistan has paid more than US $3.6 billion in interest to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over the past 40 years, according to revelations made during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Economic Affairs. The meeting, chaired by MP Saifullah Abro, took place in Parliament on Thursday, August 1, 2024, and included detailed presentations from the Finance Ministry and the State Bank of Pakistan.
Officials disclosed that the total interest payments to the IMF amounted to over Rs 1,000 billion in Pakistani rupees. The committee was informed that, in the last 30 years, Pakistan borrowed approximately US $29 billion from the IMF and repaid more than US $21.72 billion. Notably, in the past four years alone, Pakistan secured over US $6.26 billion in loans and repaid US $4.52 billion, along with over US $1.10 billion in interest payments.
The documents presented revealed that in 2024, Pakistan borrowed USD 1.35 billion in Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) from the IMF and repaid USD 646.69 million in SDRs. SDRs are an international reserve asset created by the IMF to supplement member countries’ official reserves and can be exchanged between governments for freely usable currencies in times of need. The value of SDRs is based on major international currencies.
Further details highlighted that since 1984, Pakistan had borrowed SDRs worth USD 19.55 billion (equivalent to USD 25.94 billion) from the IMF and repaid SDR 14.71 billion (USD 19.51 billion), along with interest payments amounting to USD 2.44 billion (USD 3.23 billion).
In response to these disclosures, the chairman of the committee expressed concern over the country’s financial situation, stating that “we are all partners in its ruin.” The committee has requested further details about the ongoing PHER (Post-Hurricane Emergency Recovery) program with the IMF and emphasized the importance of transparency in these financial dealings.
This meeting comes at a critical time as Pakistan is poised to receive another IMF loan of around USD 7 billion, to be disbursed over three years. The committee’s discussions underscored the significant financial burden Pakistan faces due to its debt obligations and the need for careful economic management going forward.
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