ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani government has rejected the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) request to revisit the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, according to reports.
Citing a lack in federal funding, the IMF requested Islamabad to reconsider the NFC Award with the provinces during negotiations for the second assessment of the SBA’s $3 billion loan program.
According to government sources, any attempt to change the NFC Award that violates the constitution would be rejected. While the proportion of provinces under the NFC Award will stay unchanged, the federation and its units can work together to devise a cohesive approach to addressing the issue. Furthermore, the administration aims to investigate alternate ways to increase revenue.
Under Article 160 of the Constitution, the president has the authority to approve the division of funds between the federation and the provinces via the NFC Award. Although the 2010 NFC Award was originally agreed upon for a five-year period, there has been no consensus to reconsider it since then.
The IMF group is now in Pakistan for its second evaluation of the SBA loan program. The IMF’s approval would release Pakistan’s $1.1 billion loan payment.
Maria Ghanchi