KARACHI: Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Friday met a delegation of Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and assured that his country was fostering a robust financial management framework aligned with global best practices amid its efforts for economic recovery.
The ACCA delegation, led by its global president Ayla Majid, briefed the minister about its collaborations with policymakers and government agencies, including the Finance Division, the Auditor General’s Office, and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP).
The delegation elaborated on ACCA’s specialized training, certifications and capacity-building programs, particularly in areas such as innovation, technology, public financial management, and financial governance, according to the Press Information Department (PID) of the Pakistani government.
During the meeting, Aurangzeb emphasized the need for outcome-based training and certification programs to ensure accountability and ownership in capacity-building initiatives in the South Asian country.
“He encouraged the organization to engage with other ministries and departments for broader training and development programs,” the PID said in a statement.
“The finance minister also underscored the importance of focusing on climate finance, particularly in terms of its utilization and measurable outcomes, to ensure sustainable economic growth.”
The development comes as Pakistan treads a tricky path to economic recovery under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan program it secured in September last year.
Since averting an imminent default on its external debt in 2023, Pakistan is now keeping its current account in check primarily through containing imports. The country’s exports rose 10 percent to $19.6 billion in the last seven months till January, while it is keeping tabs on imports that increased by 7 percent to $33 billion, according to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
“Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening cooperation in financial governance and professional development, with a shared vision of enhancing Pakistan’s economic resilience and institutional capacity,” the PID added.
Pakistan commits to best financial management practices amid efforts to revive economy
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Pakistan commits to best financial management practices amid efforts to revive economy
- Pakistan is navigating an economic recovery path under a $7 billion IMF loan program it secured in September last year
- The country is keeping its current account in check primarily through containing imports since averting a default in 2023
Rating firm S&P says it won’t rush Iran war downgrades, sees risks for countries like Pakistan
- Agency says it is monitoring indebted energy importers as higher oil prices strain finances
- Gulf economies seen better placed to weather shock, though Bahrain flagged as vulnerable
LONDON: S&P Global said it would not make any knee-jerk sovereign rating cuts following the outbreak of war in the Middle East, but warned on Thursday that soaring oil and gas prices were putting a number of already cash-strapped countries at risk.
The firm’s top analysts said in a webinar that the conflict, which has involved US and Israeli strikes against Iran and Iranian strikes against Israel, US bases and Gulf states, was now moving from a low- to moderate-risk scenario.
Most Gulf countries had enough fiscal buffers, however, to weather the crisis for a while, with more lowly rated Bahrain the only clear exception.
Qatar’s banking sector could also struggle if there were significant deposit outflows in reaction to the conflict, although there was no evidence of such strains at the moment, they said.
“We don’t want to jump the gun and just say things are bad,” S&P’s head global sovereign analyst, Roberto Sifon-Arevalo, said.
The longer the crisis was prolonged, though, “the more difficult it is going to be,” he added.
Sifon-Arevalo said Asia was the second-most exposed region, due to many of its countries being significant Gulf oil and gas importers.
India, Thailand and Indonesia have relatively lower reserves of oil, while the region also had already heavily indebted countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka whose finances would be further hurt by rising energy prices.
“We are closely monitoring these (countries) to see how the credit stories evolve,” Sifon-Arevalo said.
