Current account deficit hit ‘$17b’ mark last FY

Minister of State for Finance Aisha Ghaus Pasha on Wednesday said the current account deficit had reached $17 billion in the last financial year. “The current account deficit increased in the last year and we faced this situation,” she told the Senate Standing Committee on Finance. She added that as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme was stalled, other financial institutions were also unwilling to lend money to the country. “If the IMF programme had not been taken, the country's economy would have gone bankrupt,” she maintained. The Senate panel met with Senator Saleem Mandviwalla in the chair. In the meeting, the chairman and other members of the committee expressed their displeasure over the absence of the finance minister and the minister of state for finance. They raised the question about who would respond to their queries. Meanwhile, Aisha reached the committee meeting and said she would answer the questions. Senator Talha Mahmood told the chairman that when the latter was in the opposition, he would express his anger over the absence of ministers from committee meetings.