The International Monetary Fund has advised the government to take compact measures to reduce the deficit of billions of rupees which the government-owned entity Pakistan International Airline is suffering, it surfaced on Monday.
The global lender has suggested to the Government of Pakistan to chalk out a solid plan to turn the state-owned entity into a profit-making concern by reducing its deficit. According to sources in the PIA, the IMF team proposed to increase the income of the national flag carrier in order to improve its financial health.
They said that the PIA’s total financial deficit has exceeded Rs400 billion. The IMF mission led by Nathan Porter is currently in Pakistan and is holding talks with the government. The talks began on January 31 with the Pakistan side headed by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for the ninth review of the $7 billion bailout package.
The cash-strapped Pakistan is seeking an IMF lifeline to save the nation from economic collapse.
During its technical level talks, the IMF mission chief demanded clear action to bridge the daunting fiscal gap between 2 to 2.5 trillion rupees.
