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ADB to provide $10bn in financing to Pakistan under new 5-year strategy

Khaleeq Kiani
March 18, 2026

ISLAMABAD: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is expected to extend about $10 billion in financing to Pakistan over the next five years under its 2026-30 Country Partnership Strategy (CPS2026-30) launched on Wednesday.

The CPS sets out “a roadmap to support the country’s transition to sustainable and inclusive growth through private sector-led development”, the Manila-based lending agency said.

“The five-year strategy will focus on three pathways: enabling private sector development, advancing inclusion and empowerment, and enhancing resilience and sustainability”, it said, adding these priorities will be reinforced by crosscutting themes of good governance and institutional strengthening, gender equality and social incl
 
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“The new CPS is tailored to address Pakistan’s structural challenges and promote robust and lasting growth, which benefits the whole country, especially the poor and vulnerable,” said ADB Country Director for Pakistan Emma Fan.

“It promotes strategic investments and reforms across key sectors to stimulate economic growth and create jobs. ADB looks forward to supporting Pakistan’s public and private sectors in delivering on this ambitious agenda,” she said.

The CPS noted that Pakistan had stabilised its macroeconomic conditions following a series of external shocks and had initiated important structural reforms.

“The CPS responds to this evolving country context by emphasising export- and investment-led growth, supported by improved public financial management, an enabling business environment, and investments in high-impact sectors”.

Private sector development is a central feature of the strategy. Under the CPS, ADB will support reforms and investments to reduce regulatory and compliance burdens, improve infrastructure, expand access to finance, promote public–private partnerships, and boost private sector operations.

The CPS also identifies transformative opportunities in critical minerals, railways and multimodal connectivity, energy security and clean energy, agricultural productivity and value chains, integrated water resource management, and skills development and employment.
 
The ADB, which remains one of the top two multilateral lending agencies to Pakistan, said it will increasingly deploy integrated solutions, combining policy reforms, sovereign and non-sovereign financing, technical assistance, and knowledge support across Pakistan to effectively address emerging challenges.

To advance inclusion and empowerment, the ADB will prioritise investments and reforms to strengthen human capital, expand access to quality social services, and promote women’s economic participation.
 
Highlighting abundant resources and latent development potential, the ADB said about 47pc of Pakistan’s land is arable, compared with 10.7pc globally and 12.7pc in Asia. The country is also richly endowed in critical minerals. Information technology is already Pakistan’s fastest-growing export, and digital transformation can accelerate productivity, stimulate innovation, and create new business opportunities.

Moreover, Pakistan is strategically located and strengthening its infrastructure and connectivity can leverage the benefits of regional connectivity indicators. To fulfil its potential and turn its advantages into long-term development gains, Pakistan must carry out lasting reforms and combine these with sound investments.

Noting improving economic performance, the ADB said Pakistan’s economy has stabilised and returned to growth following a series of boom-and-bust cycles as GDP expanded by 3.1pc in FY2025, improving from a 0.2pc contraction in FY2023.

Average inflation declined sharply to 4.5pc in FY2025 from 23.4pc in FY2024 and fell below the State Bank of Pakistan’s target of 5–7pc. The current account balance moved from a deficit of –4.7pc of GDP in FY2022 to a 0.5pc surplus in FY2025 — the first since FY2011.
 

Pakistan to repay $3.5 billion UAE debt: cabinet minister​

Senior govt officials say discussions are taking place to convert a portion of the amount into investment

Shahbaz Rana
April 03, 2026

tribune


ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has decided to return the $3.5 billion debt of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this month, a senior cabinet minister said in a background briefing on Friday, ending speculations about the fate of the debt that Abu Dhabi had started rolling over only for a month.

The political leadership has decided to pay back the entire UAE debt, said one of the senior cabinet ministers while briefing the anchorpersons in his office.

Out of the $3.5b, a $450 million loan was taken in 1996-97 for one year, which Pakistan would be returning next week after 30 years, according to another government official.

While the cabinet minister said that the money was being returned, some senior government officials said that the discussions were taking place to convert a portion of the amount into investment.
 
It is believed that while the UAE was earlier reluctant to rollover the debt, the US-Israel-Iran war expedited the entire process, which has now culminated in the preparations to repay the debt.

The Express Tribune had reported in January that the UAE rolled over two loans of $1b each, which matured on January 16 and 22, only for a month. Pakistan had sought a two-year rollover and an interest rate of around 3%. But the UAE rolled it over then at the old terms of 6.5% interest rate.

Under the $7b International Monetary Fund programme (IMF), the UAE, Saudi Arabia and China had committed to maintaining their combined $12.5b in cash deposits with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) at least until the programme expires in September next year.
 
In December, SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad requested the UAE government to roll over the $2.5b in debt for two years and cut the interest rate by almost half.

Subsequently, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also requested the UAE president to extend the repayment period. The prime minister said the UAE had agreed to roll over the debt, but did not provide further details.

The UAE provided $2b to Pakistan in 2018 for one year, but Pakistan was unable to repay the amount and has sought rollovers annually since then. Later, the UAE extended another loan of $1b in 2023 to help Pakistan meet external financing requirements for an IMF bailout.

Early last month, Ahmad said that the UAE was not demanding repayment of the $2b loan, but had instead shifted it to a monthly rollover. But it has now emerged that the UAE asked Pakistan to pay back its money, which had originally been given only for one year.

The Pakistani authorities said that the government would return $450 million on April 11, $2b on April 17th and another $1b on April 23rd. They said that they were making arrangements to pay the debt.

However, there was a possibility that the money would be paid out of the $16.4b foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank.

Cumulatively, Pakistan will pay back $4.8b debt in April, including $1.3b Eurobond on April 8th.
 
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ADB deepens Pakistan engagement with $3.67bn commitments, targets fiscal reform and minerals

Khaleeq Kiani
April 23, 2026

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) made fresh commitments worth $3.672bn to Pakistan in 2025, up 22pc from $2.995bn the previous year, as it ventured into new areas such as the mineral sector.

In its Annual Report 2025, released on Thursday, the Manila-based lending agency also reported new financial support commitments of $1.485bn to the public sector for the year, a one-third increase from $1.113bn in 2024. Most of these loan commitments were made on ordinary commercial terms.

“In Pakistan, a policy-based guarantee is helping to mitigate credit risk for commercial bank lending to smaller enterprises and to mobilise commercial financing of $1bn,” the bank said, adding that under ADB’s approach to supporting critical minerals-to-manufacturing value chains, it approved an innovative financing package for a copper-gold mine in Pakistan to strengthen the global copper supply chain.

The bank will also provide advisory support to Pakistan to prepare road maps for digital skills development, in addition to investing in girls’ education and participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects.
 
The bank noted that Pakistan continues to face fiscal pressures that limit investment in essential services and inclusive development. In 2025, ADB committed an $800m package — including a $300m policy-based loan and up to a $500m policy-based guarantee — enabling the government to mobilise $1bn in additional financing.

The program aims to reduce fiscal deficits and public debt to create more space for social spending. It focuses on improving tax policy, administration, and compliance; enhancing public expenditure and cash management; and promoting digitalisation and private investment.

Also, Pakistan continues to face one of the world’s widest gaps in economic participation, largely due to women’s limited access to finance and their low representation in formal employment, it said. To help close the finance gap, estimated at about 37pc, ADB committed $350m to foster women-owned business ventures.

The support comprises a $300m policy-based loan to strengthen legal and regulatory frameworks for women’s inclusion, and a $50m financial intermediation loan to expand access to credit and guarantees for women entrepreneurs.
 
The program will also finance the construction of at least 1,700 multipurpose STEM laboratories in selected schools, at least 50pc of which will be established in girls’ schools, with a particular focus on marginalised communities where negative social norms discourage female students’ participation in STEM. ADB’s $100m loan for the program is accompanied by a $7m grant.

Overall, ADB committed $29.3bn from its own resources in 2025 while advancing key institutional reforms to help Asia and the Pacific navigate change and turn challenges into opportunities in a year marked by complexity and uncertainty.

“In 2025, ADB delivered unprecedented levels of support, with a 20pc increase over 2024 and expected impacts of more than 3.3m jobs and benefits for over 180m people,” said ADB President Masato Kanda.

“This shows ADB’s ability to deliver at a scale and with the speed that match the demands of Asia and the Pacific.”

Loans, grants, equity investments, guarantees, and technical assistance provided to governments and the private sector increased by 20pc year-on-year to $29.3bn across the region. This was boosted by an additional $14.7bn from partners.
 

Pakistan repays $3.45bn to UAE, confirms central bank

News Desk
April 24, 2026

Pakistan repaid the $3.45 billion deposit to the United Arab Emirates, the State Bank of Pakistan confirmed on Friday.

The central bank said the $1bn deposit was repaid to the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development on April 23 and $2.45bn was repaid to the UAE “last week”.
 

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