Pakistan reached deal with IMF on bailout package, will get $6 billion over next three years, says official

Islamabad: Pakistan has reached an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a bailout package under which the cash-strapped country will receive $6 billion over three years, according to a top official on Sunday. The agreement now awaits a formal approval by the IMF board, Dawn news quoted Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs Abdul Hafeez Shaikh as saying. Pakistani technical teams have reached an agreement with the IMF on a bailout package, he said. Pakistan would receive $6 billion worth of assistance under the IMF programme over a period of three years, Shaikh told the state-run PTV News. “The Pakistani authorities and the IMF team have reached a staff-level agreement on economic policies that could be supported by a 39-month Extended Fund Arrangement (EFF) for about $6 billion,” IMF mission chief for Pakistan Ernesto Ramirez Rigo said in a statement.