IMF Technical Mission Arrives in Pakistan to Review Budget Reforms

ISLAMABAD (Mudassar Iqbal): The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has called on the federal government to limit its discretionary powers over supplementary grants and has also demanded a special audit of such grants issued over the past ten years.

An IMF technical mission has arrived in Pakistan to review the implementation of targets related to the country’s budget process.

The mission will assess progress on reforms aimed at improving public finance management and making the budget process more transparent.

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Sources say the IMF has recommended the formation of a high-powered committee to oversee the digitized master plan for public finance management. The mission is expected to provide crucial technical assistance for more than a week.

As part of efforts to enhance transparency, the IMF will review the use of a digital public finance management assessment tool. The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning are expected to jointly issue the budget call circular before the next budget, sources added.

To further improve the mechanism and transparency of supplementary grants, the Auditor General will conduct an audit, sources said. Some redrafting of the Public Finance Management Act is also underway, according to officials from the Ministry of Finance.