Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday welcomed the World Bank’s pledge of $20 billion under its first-ever 10-year Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for Pakistan.
The prime minister, in a social media post on his X timeline, said that while focusing on six key areas, including child nutrition, quality education, clean energy, climate resilience, inclusive development, and private investment, CPF reflected Pakistan’s national priorities, as envisioned in its Home Grown Economic Transformation Plan.
The prime minister deeply appreciated the efforts of the Chief of the Army Staff General Asim Munir and others who had worked day and night to strengthen Pakistan’s foundation for such transformative partnerships.
“CPF reflects the World Bank’s confidence in Pakistan’s economic resilience and potential. We look forward to strengthening our partnership as we align our efforts for creating lasting opportunities for our people,” he remarked.
The World Bank said in a statement that policy and institutional reforms to boost private sector growth and expand fiscal space for government investment in crucial areas would also be key.
“We are focused on prioritising investment and advisory interventions that will help crowd-in much needed private investment in sectors critical for Pakistan’s sustainable growth and job creation, including energy and water, agriculture, access to finance, manufacturing and digital infrastructure,” said Zeeshan Sheikh, the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation Country Manager for Pakistan and Afghanistan in a statement.
The World Bank has currently committed about $17 billion to Pakistan for 106 projects.
Pakistan is currently under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund bailout program, which requires the country to boost government revenues and shore up external sources of financing, much of which comes from loans from China and Gulf nations.
