GENEVA: As the country tries to rebuild after devastating floods, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to hold off on demanding economic reforms before providing additional financial assistance.
At a donors’ conference that was jointly hosted by the government of Pakistan and the United Nations, the nation received pledges totaling more than $10 billion at the time of the call.
During the conference, PM Shehbaz stated that his nation was “racing against time” to meet enormous demands.
I’m requesting a long-term international support strategy. He stated, “I am asking for a new lifeline.”
He added that the flooding affected 33 million people right away, destroyed more than 2 million homes, damaged over 8,000 kilometers of roads, and damaged 3,100 kilometers of railway track.
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari acknowledged that the “colossal calamity” was “the greatest climate disaster in our country’s history.”
According to APP, Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal stated that the Post-Damage Needs Assessment, which was carried out jointly by the Government of Pakistan, the World Bank, the ADB, the European Union, and UN relief organizations, had estimated the total cost of the disaster to be $30.1 billion.
Read: PM Shehbaz, UN seek $8bn for Pakistan’s flood recovery
‘Breathing space’
On Monday, PM Shehbaz told reporters he was trying to get the Fund to give Islamabad some breathing room as it deals with the “nightmarish” situation.
In an effort to assist the general populace, the international lender demands that Pakistan end its remaining subsidies for electricity and petroleum products.
He stated, “We were already facing humongous challenges before these floods hit Pakistan.”
According to Sharif, “yet we had to again connect with the IMF, revive an agreement that was violated by the previous government, and accept even harsher conditionalities.”
Read: Apocalyptic Floods of Pakistan
He stated that Pakistan was adhering to the IMF’s requirements “as best as possible,” but he inquired “how on earth” the additional costs could be borne by the poorest citizens of the nation.
However, we remain committed to the IMF’s program. We will do everything in our power to abide by the conditions. Despite my constant efforts to persuade them: He asked, “Please pause for a moment.”
On Saturday, PM Shehbaz also had a conversation with Kristalina Georgieva, the managing director of the IMF, and he asked her to “kindly be considerate and compassionate and give us some breathing space.”
“This is a continuous discussion. We will probably one day be able to persuade them using logic and facts. Nevertheless, we will adhere to the IMF’s program.
On the sidelines of the conference, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar also met with World Bank Vice President Martin Raiser.
The Ministry of Finance stated in a tweet that he valued the financial and technical assistance provided by the World Bank to meet the floods’ challenges.
(2/2)..Finance Minister appreciated the WB for providing financial and technical support for managing the challenge posed by the floods in Pakiatan.
— Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan (@Financegovpk) January 9, 2023
Mr. Dar also met with ISDB President Muhammad Al-Jasser, USAID Deputy Administrator Isobel Coleman, and the IMF Mission Chief to Pakistan, Nathan Porter, on Monday.
UN chief’s impassioned appeal
An international conference in Geneva, which is seeking billions of dollars to support recovery from the disaster, was addressed by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who stated, “No country deserves to endure what happened to Pakistan.”
Pakistan and its people, according to Mr. Guterres, responded to “this epic tragedy with heroic humanity.”
He told the conference, “We must match the heroic response of the Pakistani people with our own efforts and massive investments to strengthen their communities for the future.”
Editorials: Floods Making History in Pakistan
The head of the UN stated that Pakistan’s “monsoon on steroids” demonstrated the necessity of the November climate summit agreement to establish a “loss and damage” fund to cover the climate-related destruction endured by developing nations that are less responsible for global warming than wealthy polluters.
He said, “Go to Pakistan if there is any doubt about loss and damage.” There is damage. There is harm.
Achim Steiner, the head of the UN agency for development, told AFP ahead of the conference that Pakistan would face “extraordinary amounts of misery” if the world did not step in and help.
Source: Dawn News