Pakistan Faces Daunting Task of Repaying $100 Billion External Debt

Pakistan is challenged with repaying a USD 100 billion external debt over four years, a figure almost 10 times its current foreign reserves. Minister of State for Finance Ali Pervaiz Malik suggests rollovers as a solution. The IMF is set to approve a fund, but a USD 5 billion gap remains.

Pakistan is grappling with the uphill task of repaying a staggering USD 100 billion external debt over the next four years, nearly 10 times its current USD 9.4 billion foreign exchange reserves, the government stated.

Minister of State for Finance Ali Pervaiz Malik revealed at a National Assembly Standing Committee meeting that the looming debt repayments for 2024 to 2027 exclude any payments linked to central bank liabilities or current account deficit financing.

Director General Debt Mohsin Chandna detailed that rollovers from Saudi Arabia, China, UAE, and Kuwait, though immediate solutions, are causing delays in securing an IMF board meeting. The IMF is slated to approve a USD 7 billion Extended Fund Facility for Pakistan, but concerns of a USD 5 billion financing gap persist.

(With inputs from agencies.)