LAHORE: Pakistan received $10.662 billion external inflows from multiple sources in the fiscal year 2019-20 against the budgeted estimates of $12.958 billion for the entire fiscal year which is 82 percent of the amount.
According to the official data, the external inflows during the corresponding period of 2018-19 were $10.595 billion which were around (109 percent) of the annual budgeted amount of $9.692 billion.
In the aftermath of COVID-19 and its persistence in the country, the disbursements of project aid from development partners dried up during the last quarter of the fiscal year 2019-20.
The pandemic has closed down most of the economic activities across the country which also slowed development projects. However, ease in the lockdown by the government may lead to an increase in project financing in the coming months.
The government received program loan of $500 million from World Bank for budgetary support, $500 million each from Asian Development Bank (ADB) & Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) for scaling up spending on health and social protection to mitigate Covid-19 adverse effects. The aforementioned program loans are also expected to build foreign exchange reserves and stabilise Pak rupee against the US dollar.
