Pak PM Imran Khan to address nation ahead of budget as country grapples with financial crisis

As Pakistan grapples with a severe financial crunch, Prime Minister Imran Khan will address the nation on Monday morning. The address is scheduled to be aired at 9 am (local time). According to Pakistani media reports, Khan would touch upon the issue of the economic crisis of the country and the upcoming federal Budget.

The government says that the budget will be poor friendly and that it would cut down unnecessary expenditure, in addition to providing relief to people, especially those who hail from tribal districts, the Pakistan Today reported.

Khan had chaired a meeting on the upcoming budget. The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government is set to present its first budget for the fiscal year 2019-20 in the National Assembly on Tuesday. It will be presented by Khan’s Advisor on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs Dr Hafeez Shaikh.

In a meeting with Advisor on Finance Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Advisor on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood, Minister of State for Revenue Hammad Azhar, Governor State Bank of Pakistan Dr Reza Baqir, Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Shabbar Rizvi and other officials, Khan discussed measures taken in the budget.

On May 12, Pakistan had reached an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a bailout package under which it would receive $6 billion over three years. Besides the assistance by IMF, Pakistan would receive additional funds worth nearly $2-3 billion from institutions like the Asian Development Bank and World Bank, the advisor had said.

(With agency inputs)