Daily Times

he European Union agreed to provide €13 million grant to Pakistan improve its fiscal policies and budget preparations, said an announcement issued on Friday.

The agreement was signed in Islamabad in the presence of Minister for Economic Affairs Hammad Azhar and the grant will be provided under EU’s Public Financial Management Support Program.

Secretary Economic Affairs Division, Syed Pervaiz Abbas, signed the agreement on behalf of Pakistan, while the EU’s ambassador to Pakistan, Androulla Kaminara, signed it on behalf of the regional bloc.

Speaking on the occasion, Azhar shared that Pakistan is maintaining its socio-economic partnership with the EU. He added that the government’s major priority is to bring about economic stability in the country. “We have to make socioeconomic progress a reality in the country,” remarked the minister.

The grant will help enhance public financial management, improve the effectiveness of government spending, and the delivery of public services for both the federal government and provincial governments of Pakistan, the ministry said in a statement. Under the agreement, the European Union will provide assistance to bring improvement in macro fiscal policies, process of the budget preparation and forecasting.

The announcement of the funding came after Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund have reached a staff-level agreement on “policies and reforms needed to complete the second review of reform program” on Thursday, according to local media reports.