The Economic Affairs Division announced on Monday that Pakistan and France had signed a contract for the suspension of loans totaling $107 million under the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI).
The Economic Affairs Division announced in a news release that the amount, which was initially repayable between July and December 2021, would now be paid back over a six-year period in semi-annual installments, with a one-year grace period.
According to the announcement, the agreement was signed by Nicolas Galey, French Ambassador, and Mian Asad Hayaud Din, Secretary of the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
With the French Republic, agreements for the suspension of $261 million have already been inked by the Pakistani administration. The G20 DSSI has provided the budgetary space required to address the pressing health and economic needs of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan thanks to the assistance provided by Pakistan’s development partners, the statement continued.
A total of $3,688 million in debt has been suspended and rescheduled within the DSSI framework for the time frame of May 2020 to December 2021.
“Pakistan has already reached and signed 93 agreements with 21 bilateral creditors for the rescheduling of its obligations within the G20 DSSI framework, totaling over $3,150 million in rescheduled payments.
This sum now stands at $3,257 million after the signing of the aforementioned agreements, according to the press release.
It further stated that discussions on the signing of the last contracts under the DSSI framework were still ongoing.
Pakistan had earlier this month signed two agreements for the suspension of $197.5 million in loans with Japan and Switzerland.
Of this sum, $191.60 million was payable to the Japanese International Cooperation Agency between January and June 2021, while $5.89 million was owed to the Swiss Confederation’s government between July and December 2021.
A similar arrangement for the suspension of the debt servicing on $846 million was made in March with the Saudi Fund for Development.
