Pakistan secures 2027 chairmanship of IMF and World Bank boards

Pakistan will chair the boards of governors of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group in 2027, with Economic Affairs Minister Ahad Khan Cheema nominated to lead both institutions’ boards. The Ministry of Economic Affairs announced the appointment during the plenary session of the 2026 World Bank Group–IMF Annual Meetings in Bangkok.

It will be Pakistan’s first time in the role since 1953. The appointment places Pakistan in the chairmanship while it is engaged with the IMF under two lending programmes: a USD 7 billion Extended Fund Facility and a USD 1.4 billion Resilience and Sustainability Facility.

The country is expected to receive about USD 1.2 billion after IMF staff and Pakistani authorities agreed on reviews of those programmes. The transfer of funds remains subject to approval by the IMF Executive Board; the reporting does not say that the board has approved it.

The annual meetings are being held from October 12 to 18 and have drawn more than 15,000 participants from 191 countries, according to the account of the announcement.

The chairmanship and the financing review are separate developments: the sources report the appointment as confirmed by Pakistan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs, while the expected disbursement still requires an IMF board decision.

Finance and Revenue Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb presented economic indicators during the meetings, saying Pakistan’s fiscal deficit had reached a 22-year low, primary surpluses had been recorded for three consecutive years, and foreign exchange reserves had improved. He also reaffirmed the government’s commitment to structural reforms and growth led by exports.

These indicators and policy commitments were reported as the minister’s statements, rather than as independently verified assessments in the coverage. Aurangzeb also met World Bank Group President Ajay Banga at a dinner hosted by Thailand’s prime minister in Bangkok during the meetings.

The reported encounter provides a separate point of contact between Pakistan’s finance minister and the head of the World Bank Group; the account does not describe any agreement or decision made at the dinner.

The appointment’s significance in the coverage rests on Pakistan’s return to the chairmanship after a long interval and its concurrent engagement with the IMF lending programmes. Pakistan’s incoming role concerns the boards of governors of both institutions, while the financing decision rests with the IMF Executive Board.

The next specific financing step described is that board’s consideration of the agreed programme reviews; the sources do not give a decision date. For Pakistan, the immediate financial issue is whether the IMF Executive Board approves the expected USD 1.2 billion. The chairmanship announcement does not itself determine that outcome.

The reporting establishes the nomination, the programme-review agreement and the approval requirement, but does not establish when the board will consider the reviews or what decision it will take.