Pakistan: Finance for Growth DPC

closed

Closed

The development objective (DO) of Finance for Growth Development Policy Credit Project is to support the government of Pakistan efforts in promoting an inclusive and transparent financial sector that is able to better intermediate resources for long term finance. The DO will be achieved through three pillars: (i) Improving access to finance and enhancing financial inclusion; (ii) Fostering long‐term finance; and (iii) Enhancing transparency of the financial sector. The operation contributes to the government’s strategy for accelerating economic growth through better access to credit and longer‐term finance, improving the investment climate through a more robust Companies Bill, promoting financial inclusion and increasing financial sector transparency. The Government of Pakistan (GoP) has made significant progress in the implementation of its economic reform program in its first three years in office. Upon taking office, GoP’s first priority was to re‐establish macroeconomic stability and strengthen macroeconomic fundamentals, addressing significant internal and external imbalances. In doing so, it also initiated a number of crucial structural reforms. Despite the substantial progress in the three operations and recent developments in the financial sector, there remains an important unfinished structural reforms agenda; and financial access and inclusion remain particularly low. Enhancing the financial sector’s role in effectively intermediating resources for public and private investment including for Pakistan’s poor and financially underserved population, including women, and to support private sector development is critical for accelerating growth. The World Bank (WB) has a long‐lasting and ongoing engagement working on the development of Pakistan’s financial sector. The engagement is a combination of financial, advisory, knowledge, and convening services and is complemented by investments and private sector engagement by the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The World Bank (WB) supported the development of the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS), and is now providing a comprehensive package of support to enable Pakistan to achieve its targets. This includes: a) the current Development Policy Credit (DPC) to support institutional and legislative reforms; b) data and analysis to underpin more effective reforms e.g. Financial Sector Assessment Programs (FSAPs); c) technical assistance to build implementation and supervisory capacity; and d) support for critical improvements to the enabling environment.

FY17 - Financial Sector

World Bank Group

Project

Residential, Commercial, Government