A damning analysis dismantles Pakistan’s habit of blaming the IMF for its economic mess, calling it a desperate cover for policy paralysis. Serving 250 million, the economy stalls under barriers throttling primary exports and vital drivers, stalling progress indefinitely.
PM Shehbaz Sharif’s panel, created for post-bailout planning after industry dialogues, deems IMF-bashing a deflection from failed aggressive reforms. As the program winds down next year, this evasion tactic spotlights deeper governance lapses.
Highlighted hurdles—sky-high energy volatility, policy whims, skewed taxes, logistics woes, splintered institutions, regulatory weights—are perennial, flagged endlessly in donor feedback and analyses.
Defying IMF advice on business facilitation, leaders vilify the lender to hide incompetence and aversion to uprooting protected vested interests.
Parallel reporting flags prolonged stagnation risks without overhaul and authentic belt-tightening. From 2022, IMF-guided measures have crushed the public with taxes and subsidy curbs, ignoring elite profligacy.
This skewed burden on the populace cries out for self-reflection and sweeping reforms, not scapegoats.