Optimism over rating upgrade prospects voiced

WASHINGTON DC: Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb met with the representatives of S&P Global here.

He shared an update on macroeconomic stabilisation, fiscal consolidation measures, and external account developments, which were reflected in improving key indicators across the board. He informed that government financing costs were coming down, which would reduce the debt servicing cost.

He hoped S&P Global would upgrade the country’s rating soon.

Energy projects: Aurangzeb to seek financial aid during US visit

However, in a meeting with Geoffery Pyatt, Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources of the United States, Finance Minister briefed him on the challenges faced by the energy sector and reforms being introduced by the government. He thanked the US Government for offer of support with regard to the country’s transition to renewable energy.

The Finance Minister participated in a panel discussion in the high-level event “Growing Stronger: An Urgent Call to Improve Child Nutrition”, organised by the World Bank in which he highlighted the high incidence of child stunting in Pakistan especially in rural areas and called for a multi-sectoral and whole-of-government approach to rectify the situation.

He emphasised the need for reforms in taxation, reduction in energy subsidies and improvement in the management of SOEs to create more fiscal space for increased investments in climate change, population control and child stunting. He thanked the World Bank for including stunting in the Country Partnership Framework of the country as it amounted to investing in the country’s future.

Finance Minister also held a meeting with Masatsugu Asakawa, President Asian Development Bank. He appreciated ADB’s partnership with Pakistan to support its development agenda and welcomed the launch of the new office of ADB in Islamabad. He hoped that Country Partnership Framework of ADB would be finalized soon. He commended ADB for successful completion of the Capital Adequacy Framework and exemption provided to Pakistan from the surcharges beyond exposure limits for the next three years. He appreciated ADB’s support for a Policy Based Loan of US$ 500 for the crucial Climate & Disaster Resilience Enhancement Program, which is going to be considered by the ADB Board on October 29. Both sides agreed on the need for domestic revenue mobilization, regional cooperation, and early completion of the ADB office in Islamabad.

In a meeting with Deemah Al Yahya, Secretary General of the Digital Cooperation Organisation (DCO), Finance Minister highlighted the enormous potential that existed in the ICT sector in Pakistan. He shared that the government was investing in an inclusive digital ecosystem to improve governance, citizens’ quality of life and economic well-being and emphasized closer collaboration in the digital infrastructure, digital economy, digital FDI, digital skills, and digital governance.

In his meeting with Dr Adnan Chilwan, Group CEO of Dubai Islamic Bank, the Finance Minister thanked the Bank for its timely support in bridging the financing gap. He appreciated that the bank was expanding its operations in Pakistan. He informed that Pakistan’s credit rating had recently been upgraded by Fitch and Moody’s and signalled the intention to tap into International Capital Markets (ICM) through an inaugural panda bond to diversify the financing base. Various lending options offered by the Bank to the Government of Pakistan were discussed and closer collaboration emphasized in this regard.

However, the Finance Minister held a meeting with Reta Jo Lewis, President of Export-Import (EXIM) Bank of the US. He urged closer collaboration between the Exim Banks of two countries and welcomed Exim Bank interest in the energy, minerals and IT sectors in Pakistan. He assured sharing the data to enable the Bank to evaluate its entry into Pakistan’s market and sought clarification on the US nexus requirements for goods and services financed or insured by the Exim Bank.

Other engagements of the Finance included attending the Annual Meetings Plenary of the World Bank Group and IMF, media interview with the Chinese Global Television Network (CGTN) and Joint Constituency Reception hosted by the Executive Directors of the World Bank and IMF.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024