Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb met with Turkey’s Minister of Treasury and Finance, Mehmet Şimşek, in Washington, DC, where both sides acknowledged the ongoing high-level engagements between the leadership of Pakistan and Turkey. During his visit to the United States, the two ministers reaffirmed their shared commitment to further strengthening the longstanding brotherly relations between the two countries. Finance Minister Aurangzeb briefed his Turkish counterpart on Pakistan’s ongoing economic reforms, highlighting initiatives in areas such as tax policy, energy, state-owned enterprises, privatization, and public finance. He also shared details about the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) reform journey, which was recently presented at a World Bank event, and Pakistan’s efforts to improve its tax-to-GDP ratio. Aurangzeb discussed the country’s progress in integrating data across government departments to enhance financial management, transparency, and accountability. Separately, the Finance Minister held a meeting with International Finance Corporation (IFC) Managing Director Makhtar Diop. He expressed gratitude to the IFC for designating Pakistan as a regional hub under its recent organizational restructuring, describing the recognition as a reflection of growing global confidence in Pakistan’s economy. Aurangzeb also briefed Makhtar Diop on developments in the Reko Diq mining project and expressed hope that the EXIM Bank would soon join the venture. He appreciated IFC’s support in financial inclusion and digital payment rights projects at the grassroots level. Furthermore, he acknowledged IFC’s advisory contributions in the sectors of pharmaceuticals, electric vehicles, and commodity exchanges. The minister welcomed the IFC Managing Director’s plan to visit Pakistan during the upcoming Spring Meetings. On this occasion, both Aurangzeb and Makhtar Diop also participated in a signing ceremony for a swap agreement between the State Bank of Pakistan and the IFC.
FM Aurangzeb boosts economic cooperation with Turkey, IFC
