According to reports, the France-led international donors’ meeting seeking financial pledges for flood-ravaged Pakistan will not take place this month owing to a delay in finalizing the restoration framework.
The outcomes of the France-led conference between the planning ministry and foreign donors on Friday showed that the Resilient Recovery and Reconstruction Framework (3RF) was still in the consultative stage.
The framework, in some form, is required to persuade the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to send a team to Pakistan and to conduct the international donors’ meeting.
According to a press release from the planning ministry, Secretary Planning Commission Syed Zafar Ali Shah presided over a consultative meeting with donors and diplomats from various countries in order to present a comprehensive rehabilitation plan that included both short-term and long-term goals before the donor conference.
According to the sources, the proceedings revealed that the framework’s development was in a “pre-framework stage,” with stakeholder discussions taking place. Another round of talks will take place next week when Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal returns from Egypt, where he is attending the COP27 summit.
Consultations are held to fine-tune strategic recovery goals and to prioritize sectors for inclusion in the recovery framework as part of each strategic recovery target.
The President of France, Emmanuel Macron has volunteered to convene a donor meeting with the United Nations to get financial assistance for Pakistan in the wake of the $30 billion flood damages.
Last month, a Foreign Office spokeswoman said that “a detailed strategy will be brought to this summit.” This is likely to happen around the end of the year, maybe at the end of November.” He stated that final choices on the precise schedule and location of this meeting will be made.
The planning minister expressed optimism for a conference this month while addressing on the floor of the National Assembly. However, the information provided by diplomats and foreign lenders indicated that the summit may not take place until December 20.
Officials from the planning ministry said that two more phases remained once the phase was completed. The 3RF considers the demands for recovery and rebuilding over a five to a seven-year timeframe.
According to reports, the validation exercise will be carried out after the drafting of the framework before convening the donors’ meeting.
On Friday, donors were notified that the multi-stakeholder roundtables with the donor community and line ministries will be completed by November 23rd. Similarly, by November 30, the planning objectives for each sector will be finalized. The analysis and writing of chapters will be finished by December 5, and all stakeholders’ comments and validation will be completed by December 10.
The report will be completed by December 20, after which an international meeting will be held.
