Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Mohammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday said that Pakistan has achieved a staff-level agreement (SBA) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for its second loan review, with the board is expected to approve the next tranche in early December 2025.
Aurangzeb was speaking at the ninth Future Summit in Karachi on Wednesday, where he underlined the government’s shift toward an investment-driven economic model, led primarily by the private sector.
Aurangzeb said investor confidence was strengthening, adding, “Our direction is right.” He confirmed that Google had decided to open an office in Pakistan and was considering the country as an export hub. A blockchain centre has also been established at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) as part of a broader focus on emerging technologies.
The minister said fiscal reforms had progressed steadily over 18 months, with efforts underway to expand the tax base using artificial intelligence. “The sugar sector is now digitised, and the cigarette sector will follow,” he said, adding that 900,000 new tax filers had been registered.
He also noted interest from Egypt in adopting Pakistan’s reform model, while the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) was on track for completion by the end of the year. Recent UAE investment in a Pakistani bank signalled “the beginning of a new era,” Aurangzeb said.
