An International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation is set to visit Pakistan starting February 25 to hold discussions on the third review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF), according to official sources. During the visit, negotiations will also take place on the second review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), the sources said. The IMF delegation is scheduled to visit Karachi and will hold meetings at the State Bank of Pakistan as part of its engagements. The sources further stated that Pakistan recorded a fiscal surplus of 1.3 per cent in the fiscal year 2025 — its first current account surplus in 14 years. The visit takes place at a critical juncture for Pakistan, as Islamabad grapples with fiscal pressures and external-sector challenges. During the discussions with the IMF, officials are also expected to focus on enhancing revenue collection, advancing governance reforms, and strengthening social protection initiatives. Earlier, speaking at a press briefing in Washington, IMF Director of Communications Julie Kozack said Pakistan’s reform efforts have helped stabilise the economy and rebuild confidence, citing improved fiscal discipline and stronger external accounts. “Pakistan’s policy efforts under the EFF (Extended Fund Facility) have helped stabilise the economy and rebuild confidence,” Julie Kozack said while responding to a question. She said that Pakistan’s fiscal performance has been strong. Pakistan currently has a primary fiscal surplus of 1.3% of GDP in fiscal year 2025, which was in line with programme targets. Headline inflation has been relatively contained, and Pakistan posted its first current account surplus in 14 years in fiscal year 2025. “And also, maybe just to highlight that the governance and corruption diagnostic report was recently published, and it includes proposals for reforms, including simplifying tax policy design, levelling the playing field for public procurement, and improving the asset declaration transparency,” she added. The IMF team will visit Pakistan for the third review of the EFF and the second review of the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). The review will assess the performance of the assigned criteria and targets for September 2025 and December 2025. Pakistan seeks to meet conditions under its $7 billion EFF programme, which is designed to help countries address deep‑seated economic weaknesses and medium‑term balance‑of‑payments problems. Previously, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told the media after the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue meeting that there is no shortfall in external financing. Days ago, Topline Securities in its report said Pakistan is likely to meet nearly all seven Quantitative Performance Criteria (QPCs) set under its ongoing IMF programme.
IMF delegeation arriving on Feb 25 for key EFF, RSF reviews
