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Geneva flood pledges: Pakistan receives only $1.48bn of $10.9bn

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  • Only $780m disbursed in project financing as of Sep 2023.
  • Govt receives roughly $700m in oil and commodity financing.
  • Saudi Arabia so far disbursed $600 million as an oil facility.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has, to date, received only $1.48 billion in funding from both multilateral and bilateral creditors as part of the Geneva pledges totaling $10.9 billion designated for the reconstruction of areas affected by devastating floods last year, The News reported on Wednesday.

The progress of project financing, however, has been alarmingly slow, with just $780 million disbursed as of September 2023. Pakistan endured severe flooding in the previous fiscal year, resulting in extensive human and financial hardships, but there was hope for rehabilitation, as donors committed $10.9 billion in the form of loans to support the reconstruction endeavors.

Islamabad, too, has successfully obtained approximately $700 million in oil and commodity financing. Nevertheless, it is an undeniable fact that the distribution of project loans has remained frustratingly sluggish, necessitating swift action from all federal and provincial agencies responsible for pulling off flood-related projects in their respective regions. Therefore, accelerating these efforts is imperative.

“The caretaker prime minister has also taken notice of this slow disbursement of committed pledges as the project loan acceleration depends upon the executing agencies’ ability to implement the projects on a fast-track basis,” a top official of the government confided to The News here on Tuesday.

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) had committed $3.6 billion on account of commodity financing, out of which $1.1 billion was planned to be disbursed on an annual basis over a year. Out of $3.6 billion, there was a planned disbursement of $300 million, which was underway during the current fiscal year.

However, the remaining $3.3 billion was still problematic because it was syndicated financing, which the IsDB planned to secure from other commercial banks. So far, there are indications that its interest rate might exceed and fall into a range of over 10%.

However, the oil-exporting giants argued before the government that if they secured local funding, it would be on the much higher side, keeping in view the higher interest rates in the domestic market.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has so far disbursed $600 million as an oil facility out of total financing committed for commodities and oil financing. The government has heavily relied on the disbursements of project loans from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank. From the World Bank loans, there are projects going to be executed in Sindh and Balochistan for the construction of housing and agriculture sectors.

The premier is expected to chair an important meeting to review progress on donor-funded projects for flood-affected areas after his return from abroad, as one of such important meetings got postponed last week before his recent departure to the USA.

The implementation of flood-affected area projects needs acceleration in order to materialise maximum disbursements from the pledged loans, but without improving bottlenecks at execution levels, this wish will remain just a pipe dream.

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Pakistanis travel to India to attend Hazrat Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti Urs.

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In Ajmer Sharif, a group of pilgrims from Pakistan laid a traditional chaddar before the shrine of Hazrat Khawaja Syed Moinuddin Hasan Chishti.

Today, the traditional Chaddar was deposited at the Shrine of Hazrat Khwaja Syed Moinuddin Hasan Chishti (RA) in Ajmer Sharif by Pakistani Zaireen, accompanied by Mr. Tariq Masroof, Second Secretary, Pakistan High Commission, New Delhi.

A group of 89 Pakistani Zaireen are in Ajmeer Sharif from January 7–9, 2025, to help celebrate Hazrat Khwaja Syed Moinuddin Hasan Chishti’s (RA) 813th annual Urs Mubarak.

Following the traditional chaddar’s placement on behalf of the Pakistani people and government, the delegation prayed for Pakistan’s development and well-being.

The delegation was greeted by notable members of the Anjuman Moinia Fakhria Chishtia Khuddam Khwaja Sahib upon their arrival at the Dargah.

The annual Urs Mubarak of Hazrat Khwaja Syed Moinuddin Hasan Chishti (RA) is attended by Pakistani Zaireen in accordance with the 1974 India-Pakistan protocol for religious shrine visits.

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Imran was granted freedom by the establishment via Naqvi: Marwat

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Sher Afzal Marwat, the leader of the PTI, revealed that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had suggested home arrest for PTI founder Imran Khan, a proposal that the former prime minister categorically refused.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also proposed the founder’s release on December 22 of last year, but this proposal was also rejected, according to Marwat.

Marwat asserted that there were no further backdoor discussions. He claimed that the meeting would have happened by now if Mohsin Naqvi had been involved in the negotiation process and that PTI members are becoming disillusioned with the government’s unwillingness to participate in a meaningful way.

Because the authorities did not want Imran Khan to speak during the process, the PTI firebrand said that the PTI negotiation committee was not being given the opportunity to meet with Khan. He went on to say that the events of the past few days had disappointed him and that he hoped the PTI team could meet with the party founder tomorrow.

Although the government did not interfere and the authorization was obtained from another source, Marwat said that the government was unable to arrange a meeting between the negotiation committee and Imran Khan. “If the government was interested, the negotiation committee would have met the founder already,” he stated.

“It will be challenging to get back to the negotiation table if this keeps up,” he cautioned. He said that the speaker of the National Assembly had not returned calls, indicating that attempts to reach him had been unsuccessful.

Marwat emphasized how crucial it is that the PTI negotiation team and the currently detained Imran Khan meet every day. He claimed that although the Islamabad High Court had set aside a day to meet with the founder, not a single meeting had occurred.

Despite obstacles, Marwat expressed optimism for improved results and acknowledged some progress in earlier rounds of negotiations. Nonetheless, he insisted that the government could not permit a meeting with such helplessness. He said that both the PML-N and the PPP had previously shared the PTI founder’s position. “If some mercy was shown towards us in the last couple of years, our attitude would have changed,” he added.

According to Marwat, the government’s words and deeds paint a “dark picture.” He notably cited Khawaja Asif’s remarks and the PTI leadership’s response, calling them unhelpful.

Marwat minimized hopes of Trump’s possible comeback and rejected recent comments made by US President-elect Donald Trump’s aide Richard Grenell. We do not believe that Trump’s reelection will be advantageous to us. He declared, “We have faith in the judges.

He warned that more instability might result from further delays in his conclusion. “The future will be much worse than the past if we do not act now,” Marwat stated, restating PTI’s resolve to find a peaceful solution while holding the government responsible for its deeds.

“PTI made backdoor contacts.”
In a separate, exclusive interview with Samaa TV, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan revealed that the party has set up backdoor contacts for talks prior to November 26. Formal discussions, he added, could not start. “No one, including Mohsin Naqvi, talked about the release of the PTI founder,” Gohar asserted, adding that he had not been informed of Imran Khan’s house detention in Bani Gala.

PTI Founder Imran Khan’s sister Aleema Khan disclosed earlier in the day that her brother had been repeatedly approached for a backdoor deal, including one that involved house detention at Bani Gala.

Aleema told the media after visiting Khan at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi that Ali Amin Gandapur had offered her brother house arrest, but she stressed that no one had spoken to Imran Khan personally about these suggestions.

“Imran Khan has had offers of deals ever since day one, but no one has approached him directly. Aleema Khan stated, “At Bani Gala, Ali Amin Gandapur presented the offer of house arrest. Her brother was also counseled to keep quiet and not speak out.”

According to his sister, Imran Khan has repeatedly turned down such offers during his more than one and a half years in prison. Aleema questioned why, after spending so much time in jail, he was placed under home arrest. “If a backdoor deal was going to occur, it would have already occurred,” she said.

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In interbank trade, the Pakistani rupee modestly appreciates versus the US dollar.

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In the interbank market, the Pakistani Rupee increased by 0.03% against the US dollar during Monday’s early trading session.

The rupee strengthened by 8 paise against the dollar, reaching 278.48 as of 10:10 a.m. By ending at 278.56, the rupee had lost 9 paise the day before.

Globally, Monday saw a minor decline in the US dollar, but it was still close to its two-year high. In order to obtain additional understanding of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate strategy, traders are anticipating US economic data, namely the December non-farm payrolls report.

The Chinese yuan also garnered notice when, following a strong defense by the People’s Bank of China in December, it dropped below the psychological level of 7.3 per dollar for the first time in 14 months.

Last spotted, the offshore yuan increased by 0.15% to 7.3487 per US dollar, while the onshore yuan fell by 0.05% to 7.3252 per US dollar.

The speeches that various Federal Reserve policymakers are scheduled to give this week, in which they are anticipated to restate their positions on inflation and the continuous fight against price increases, are also attracting market attention.

Expectations of fewer interest rate reduction from the Fed have helped the US dollar gain strength, and last week it reached a two-year high. Meanwhile, the euro fell to its lowest level in more than two years.

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