ISLAMABAD: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved technical assistance to help promote increased sustainability and transparency in Pakistan’s borrowing practices.

To support this overarching objective, the assistance on a grant basis will focus on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Finance Policy (SDFP), strengthening fiscal risk management practices, and public debt recording, management, and reporting.

In a report associated with the technical assistance, the ADB said that while Pakistan’s public debt is assessed as sustainable, macro-fiscal shocks, including changes in primary and fiscal deficits, real interest rate movements, and exchange rate depreciation, continue to pose a risk to debt sustainability in Pakistan.

ADB’s support for debt sustainability will be strengthened by aligning with the SDFP principles of the International Development Association (IDA). One of the pillars of SDFP is a debt sustainability enhancement programme, which creates additional incentives for countries to move toward sustainable development financing, the report said.

Published in Dawn, August 17th, 2022