Pakistan has set out its priorities for its year chairing the G-24 group of developing countries, and will host the group's Technical Group Meeting in February 2027, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has said.

Pakistan formally took over the chairmanship of the Intergovernmental Group of Twenty-Four on 1 November 2026, succeeding Nigeria as outgoing chair. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed the appointment as a significant diplomatic milestone, saying it recognised Pakistan's effective role in global economic affairs.

Three priorities for the chairmanship

Aurangzeb set out three strategic priorities for Pakistan's chairmanship. The first is to place development-led growth at the centre of global economic policymaking, so that macroeconomic stability supports investment, jobs and shared prosperity rather than only crisis management.

The second is a stronger voice for developing economies in multilateral institutions, including the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. The third is reform of the international financial architecture, covering affordable and timely development financing, sustainable debt solutions, stronger global financial safety nets, climate resilience and greater mobilisation of public and private capital.

The finance ministry said Pakistan would pursue the agenda through consultation with G-24 members across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and through engagement with the IMF and the World Bank.

Briefing from the G-24 Secretariat

On 4 November, Aurangzeb received a virtual briefing from Dr Iyabo Masha, Director of the G-24 Secretariat, on the responsibilities and the forward work programme that come with the chairmanship. Saif Ullah Dogar, Senior Advisor to the Executive Director at the IMF, also attended the session.

Dr Masha briefed the finance minister on the group's institutional framework, its policy and research agenda and its engagement with international financial institutions. She also outlined preparations for the G-24 Technical Group Meeting, which Pakistan is expected to host in February 2027.

Aurangzeb thanked the secretariat for its role in supporting the group's work and advancing the interests of emerging markets and developing economies, and said Pakistan would pursue a focused, inclusive and forward-looking agenda built on policy coordination and consensus-building.

What the G-24 is

The G-24 was formed in 1971 to coordinate the positions of developing countries on international monetary and development finance issues, particularly in their dealings with the IMF and the World Bank. Its secretariat is based at IMF headquarters in Washington.

Ministers of the group held their 116th meeting in Bangkok on 13 October, with Nigeria's Taiwo Oyedele in the chair and Aurangzeb as first vice-chair. The handover to Pakistan was announced at that meeting, and the finance ministry confirmed on 1 November that Pakistan had taken over.

The chairmanship is an agenda-setting and convening role rather than a lever over any country's programme or over IMF and World Bank decisions. Its value lies in shaping the shared positions developing countries take into negotiations on debt, climate finance and the rules of the institutions that lend to them.

What to watch

The next milestone is the Technical Group Meeting in Pakistan in February 2027, where officials will prepare the ground for the ministers' meetings held alongside the IMF and World Bank spring meetings. The communiqué issued after those meetings will be the first to carry Pakistan's name at the top of the group.