Karachi (Agencies): Pakistan has received $1.3 billion in loan from Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB).
“SBP has received $1.3 bn from Asian Development Bank (ADB),” State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said in a statement on Tuesday.
Last week, the ADB approved an emergency loan of $1 billion for Pakistan, shoring up the country foreign currency reserves which had apparently shaken up following Islamabad made a notable foreign debt repayment.
According to a press release issued last Friday, the quick dispersing loan is part of a multi-donor economic reform programme spearheaded by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to stablise the economy which crumbled mid-2018, the statement added.
The loan was approved after the government implemented a series of reforms and actions, supported by IMF, to improve the country's "current account deficit, strengthen its revenue base, and protect the poor against the social impact of the economic crisis".
Commenting on the loan, ADB Director General for Central and West Asia Werner Liepach maintained that the bank is committed to providing Pakistan support so that it may strengthen its economy.
“These funds will meet the government’s emergency financing needs to prevent significant adverse social and economic impacts and lay the foundations for a return to balanced growth," he said.
In another press release issued on Friday, the ADB approved a $300 million policy-based loan to aid the government in ensuring financial stability, governance and tackling hurdles in the policy infrastructure in Pakistan's energy sector.