Berlin: The population of Pakistan was given the good news that Pakistan would be removed from the Grey List of countries prepared by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). It was being dreamed that Pakistan’s trade with other countries would increase, investments would start coming into Pakistan. Consequently, Pakistan will be eligible for loans from the International Monetary Fund. But the dreams vanished in thin air with the announcement that Pakistan would be retained in the Grey List of the FATF. Criticism is rife in the country that results from premature celebrations.
FATF has prepared a list of countries funding the terrorist organisations instead of taking tough actions against them. Pakistan has featured in the Grey List of FATF between 2008 to 2010, 2012 to 2015 and 2018 to 2022. Certain economic sanctions are imposed against the countries appearing in the Grey List. If these countries fail to take the actions suggested by the FATF in the stipulated time, these countries are put in the Black List. Pakistani leaders and media were confident that as Pakistan has acceded to many FATF demands, the country would not remain in the Black List and would be removed from the Grey List.
But all of them have been disappointed. It has been announced that Pakistan will remain in the Grey List for the next three months. Therefore, there will be no changes in Pakistan’s situation. This will significantly impact the Pakistani efforts to secure loans from international institutions. Currently, Pakistan is left with sufficient foreign exchange reserves to pay for the imports for the next two months. In this scenario, Pakistan could be devastated if the international institutions do not offer funding at concessional rates.
Including in the Grey List has resulted in losses worth $36 billion for the Pakistani economy. There will be further additions, which could prove fatal for Pakistan.
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