World Bank MD to discuss Pakistan's economic reforms

World Bank's Managing Director Mulyani Indrawati, who arrived here yesterday for talks on economic reforms, said that the country has successfully stabilized its economy and now needs to sustain the economic reforms.

Indrawati will hold talks with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to have a full briefing on the economic performance of Pakistan.

According to the Dawn, she is also expected to call on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and meet federal ministers during which she would be updated about the country's reforms programme. She would also discuss the support Pakistan needs for its development projects.

The World Bank Group's programme in Pakistan is governed by its Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) after an agreement with the government. Its portfolio has 25 investment lending projects under implementation with a total net commitment of 4.95 billion dollars.

Under the CPS, the World Bank Group has proposed an approach which is both selective and integrative in extending support to the federal and provincial governments to address governance challenges.

The World Bank feels that Pakistan is still facing significant governance challenges that may hamper attempts of policy changes leading to poverty reduction and economic growth and addressing these challenges will be critical to the success of policy decisions aimed at improving the energy sector, service delivery, competitiveness, as well as stability in the country.