ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have made significant progress towards reaching a Staff-Level Agreement (SLA) on the first review of the $7 billion loan programme.

“The IMF and the Pakistani authorities made significant progress toward reaching a Staff Level Agreement (SLA) on the first review under the 37-month Extended Arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF),” IMF Mission Chief to Pakistan Nathan Porter said in a statement on Friday.

The IMF team, led by Porter, was in Pakistan from February 24 to March 14 to hold discussions on the first review of Pakistan’s economic programme supported by the EFF and the possibility of a new arrangement under the lender’s Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).

The country’s latest loan programme, secured by the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif-led government last year, has played a key role in stabilising Pakistan’s economy and the government has said the country is on course for a long-term recovery.

If the IMF approves the first review of the loan, the country is in line to receive about $1 billion as the second instalment of the loan package.

This is a developing story and is being updated with more details.