IMF board stresses sustained programme implementation, widening tax base

The executive board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has stressed the “sustained implementation” of the new $7 billion bailout package, as well as broadening the tax base.

The IMF’s Executive Board said this in a statement issued on Saturday, following its approval of the 37-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Pakistan, under which it has disbursed a $1bn tranche.

The government had in July agreed to the deal — its 24th IMF payout since 1958 — in exchange for unpopular reforms...