Pakistan, Oct. 22 -- When the IMF this week praised Middle East and North African economies (Pakistan included) for having "beat expectations," policymakers in Islamabad must have taken a quiet sigh of relief. After all, the country once again seemed to have escaped the edge of fiscal collapse. Growth projections will now be revised upward, inflation is said to be easing, and the government's mouthpieces will waste no time presenting this as proof that stabilisation is working.

Inside Islamabad's policy circles, the story is one of achievement. Completing the short-term Stand-By Arrangement and securing a new Extended Fund Facility are described as victories of discipline. Outside the capital, however, the right path leads nowhere famili...