***Audit Report Reveals Decades-Old Export Credit Remains Unpaid***
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan has failed to recover $304.5 million from fivecountries, including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Iraq, Sudan, and Guinea-Bissau,according to a recent audit report.
The report states that the loans — equivalent to over PKR 86 billion — wereextended as export credit during the 1980s and 1990s. Despite repeatedreminders, demand notices, and official correspondence, the outstandingamounts remain unpaid.
Iraq owes the largest share, with $231.3 million pending, followed by Sudanwith $46.6 million. Bangladesh owes $21.4 million related to the supply ofa sugar plant and cement, while Guinea-Bissau has an outstanding debt of$3.65 million. Sri Lanka’s exact outstanding figure was not disclosed inthe report.
Read Top Stories
The audit further noted that the matter was highlighted as far back as the2006–07 fiscal year, yet no significant progress in recovery has beenachieved. The Auditor General has recommended that the issue be taken up atan appropriate diplomatic level to ensure repayment.