Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan has said on Sunday that his country in need of the “painful” economic reforms in order to cut off its massive international debt, further signalling that he may be willing to cut his government’s spending for a bailout package.
According to the Times of India news reports, Khan’s comment was fetched just after his meeting with the head of the IMF (International Monetary Fund). He made these comments at the World Government summit held in Dubai, where Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri also noticed making his own investment pitch at the summit for his small nations, which is now struggling and facing a major economic crisis being one of the world’s most-indebted nations.
Khan made remarks in an address in order to repeatedly hit over the need for the economic reforms as the IMF head Christine Lagarde looked from the audiences.
Islamabad’s prime minister said, “I repeat the reforms are painful. It’s like surgery. When you conduct surgery for a while the patient suffers but that improves.”
He added saying: “The worst thing that can happen for society is that you keep postponing reforms because of the fear that you would have opposition, the vested interests stand up and you don’t do reforms.”
Khan’s pitch in the Gulf was not surprising, as he has gone to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia for financial support for his debt-ridden country.
Islamabad has been long seeking $8 billion bailout package from the IMF. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, Islamabad has about $100 billion in its external liabilities and debt.