Islamabad (TIP): The International Monetary Fund has approved the completion of the sixth review of its stalled USD 6 billion programme for Pakistan, paving the way for an immediate disbursement of about USD 1 billion loan tranche for the cash-strapped country. The IMF’s Executive Board held a meeting in Washington DC on February 2 to consider Pakistan’s request for completion of the sixth review and release of a USD 1 billion tranche under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). The completion of this review allows for an immediate disbursement of 750 million in Special Drawing Rights (SDR) (about USD 1 billion) to Pakistan, bringing total disbursements under the arrangement to SDR 2,144 million (about USD 3 billion) or 106 per cent of the country’s quota, the Dawn newspaper reported on Thursday. Finance Minister ShaukatTarin also confirmed the approval in a tweet. “I am pleased to announce that the IMF Board has approved the 6th tranche of their programme for Pakistan,” he wrote. In July 2019, Pakistan and the IMF reached a staff-level agreement on economic policies for a three-year Extended Fund Facility (EFF). Under the agreement, Pakistan was to receive about USD 6 billion for a period of 39 months. The IMF had pledged to provide support under the EFF programme when Pakistan’s economy was in a critical stage and badly needed assistance to meet the balance of payments challenge. (PTI)