ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Hindu community began celebrating their traditional spring festival of Holi on Thursday. The celebration marks the end of winter and expresses gratitude for a good harvest.
The Hindu community in Pakistan makes up about 2 percent of the country’s population, with the most dense population of Hindus to be found in the southeastern province of Sindh, sometimes referred to as “the land of mystics.”
In recent years, several high-profile Pakistani politicians have participated in celebrations for the festival in an attempt to make the community feel included.
This year, Pakistan People's Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari extended greetings to the Hindu community, saying that his party stood for equal rights and opportunities for the country’s non-Muslim citizens.
He declared that Mohammed Ali Jinnah, Pakistan’s founding father, envisioned an inclusive and egalitarian state, and added that all citizens should be able to celebrate religious festivals in a free and secure environment.
Last year, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has now been disqualified from office, issued a similar message to the country’s Hindus. He said that Pakistan was created as a hub of peace for people of all faiths.
Hindus celebrate festival of colors in Pakistan
Hindus celebrate festival of colors in Pakistan
Pakistan receives $1.2 billion from IMF under EFF, RSF loan programs— central bank
- IMF Executive Board approved Pakistan’s second review under EFF, first review under RSF loan programs this week
- Disbursements from IMF have been crucial for cash-strapped Pakistan as it tries to recover from economic crisis
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s central bank announced on Thursday that it has received $1.2 billion under the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) External Fund Facility and Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) loan programs.
The IMF approved a $7 billion bailout package for Pakistan under its EFF program in September 2024 while in May 2025, it approved a separate $1.4 billion loan to Pakistan under its climate resilience fund. The RSF will support Pakistan’s efforts in building economic resilience to climate vulnerabilities and natural disasters.
The global lender approved Pakistan’s second review under its $7 billion EFF program and first review under the RSF loan on Tuesday. As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the central bank received a combined sum of $1.2 billion under the EFF and RSF on Dec. 10.
“The amount would be reflected in SBP’s foreign exchange reserves for the week ending on Dec. 12, 2025,” the SBP said in a statement.
IMF bailouts have been crucial for cash-strapped Pakistan, which has been struggling with a prolonged economic crisis that has exhausted its financial reserves and weakened its currency. Pakistan came to the brink of a sovereign default in 2023 before a last-gasp IMF bailout package helped it avert the crisis.
Pakistan has had to take tough decisions to comply with the IMF’s loan requirements, which include scrapping subsidies from food and fuel items to trigger inflation. Since then, Pakistan has attempted to regain stability by sharply reducing inflation and recording a current account surplus.
The disbursement, however, comes at an important time for the South Asian country as it mitigates losses from a deadly monsoon season that killed over 1,000 people since late June and caused at least $2.9 billion in damages to agriculture and infrastructure.
