UAE agrees to roll over Pakistan debt, add $1 billion more

UAE agrees to roll over Pakistan debt, add $1 billion more

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan welcomes Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Abu Dhabi
UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan welcomes Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Abu Dhabi. Photo: Hamad AL-KAABI / UAE PRESIDENTIAL COURT/AFP
Source: AFP

PAY ATTENTION: Celebrate South African innovators, leaders and trailblazers with us! Click to check out Women of Wonder 2022 by Briefly News!

The United Arab Emirates has agreed to roll over $2 billion owed by Pakistan and provide the country with an extra loan of $1 billion, Islamabad said Thursday.

The agreement comes as Pakistan grapples with a major foreign exchange crisis, holding enough reserves to pay for just three weeks of imports.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in the UAE earlier Thursday for talks with top Gulf officials to seek help for the battered economy.

"The UAE president agreed to roll over the existing loan of US$2 billion and provide a US$1 billion additional loan," a statement from Sharif's office said.

"Both sides agreed to deepen the investment cooperation, stimulate partnerships and enable investment integration opportunities between the two countries."

The statement did not provide the terms of the loan agreement.

Read also

Pakistan flood recovery needs 'massive' investment: UN

PAY ATTENTION: Click “See First” under the “Following” tab to see Briefly News on your News Feed!

Pakistan's national debt stands at $274 billion -- or nearly 90 percent of gross domestic product.

The nation's forex reserves have dwindled to less than $6 billion, with obligations of more than $8 billion due in the first quarter alone.

A $7 billion loan agreement with the IMF -- about half of which has already been disbursed -- has stalled because Pakistan has not fully implemented tough economic measures including slashing subsidies and raising taxes.

The economy has also been hammered by devastating monsoon floods that left almost a third of the country under water last year, and the government says it needs more than $16 billion over the next three years to rebuild.

Islamabad won some relief earlier this week when nations pledged over $9 billion to help with recovery efforts.

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

Source: AFP

Authors:
AFP avatar

AFP AFP text, photo, graphic, audio or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. AFP news material may not be stored in whole or in part in a computer or otherwise except for personal and non-commercial use. AFP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in any AFP news material or in transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages whatsoever. As a newswire service, AFP does not obtain releases from subjects, individuals, groups or entities contained in its photographs, videos, graphics or quoted in its texts. Further, no clearance is obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP material. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP material.