Pakistan has received another round of financial support from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This time, the country got around $1.02 billion under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF), which is a long-term loan programme.
The news was shared by Pakistan’s central bank, State Bank of Pakistan, on Wednesday, adding that the amount will show up in its foreign exchange reserves for the week ending May 16.
It wrote on X, “SBP has received the second tranche of SDR 760 million (US$ 1,023 million) from the IMF under the EFF program. The amount will be reflected in SBP’s foreign exchange reserves for the week ending on 16th May 2025.”
This payment is part of the second instalment of a $7 billion IMF loan deal that began in September 2024 and will run for 37 months. With this latest inflow, the total funds given to Pakistan so far under the EFF have reached $2.1 billion.
The funds were cleared after a review meeting held by the IMF’s Executive Board on 9 May. In the same meeting, Pakistan was also granted an extra $1.4 billion under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). This special funding aims to help countries tackle climate change challenges and improve disaster preparedness.
However, not everyone is pleased with this support. India chose not to vote at the IMF meeting and raised serious concerns about Pakistan getting more financial help. In its official remarks, India said that Pakistan has a poor track record of using IMF loans properly and has been relying on bailouts for far too long.
India also pointed out that although Pakistan has a civilian government, its military still has a strong hold over both politics and the economy, making it harder to carry out reforms.
While Pakistan has welcomed the financial lifeline, India’s objections highlight the growing international debate on how such funds are used and whether they actually lead to real change on the ground.