The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged quick application of the rightsizing policies to lower spending.
During continuous negotiations with Pakistani officials on first economic review under the $7 billion loan agreement, the IMF team made demand.
The delegation negotiated rightsizing with Cabinet officials from the Division of Policy, Ministry of Finance, and Secretary of Cabinet.
Additionally looking for a strategy to address the income gap in the next quarter were the visiting officials.
The IMF has advised Pakistan to make sure the Rs300 billion tax collecting deficit is filled in the upcoming quarter. The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) should take actions under the compliance risk management and risk improvement plan to cover the shortfall.
During the negotiations, the Pakistani officials briefed the IMF delegation on major retailers outside the tax net in large cities and measures to recover tax in high risk cases in Islamabad, Karachi, and Lahore.
The world lender underlined that the recovery from high-risk situations in these locations could help to offset the income deficit.
Official documents revealed that discussions were also held between IMF, the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum to review the performance of these sectors. The IMF delegation also held discussions on Islamic banking practices and procedures.
The IMF officials also held discussions with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) regarding the re-finance scheme transition and development finance and the operationalization of the bank resolution framework for the banking sector.
