Mr. Kenji Okamura, the Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, has engaged in a discussion with the Government of Sri Lanka yesterday about the next steps to complete the 2nd review of the program of the International Monetary Fund.
That was when the “Mid-Year Spring Conference” of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank was held yesterday (15) in Washington DC, America.
Debt restructuring progress as well as next steps following the staff-level agreement reached last March were discussed there.
Mr. Okamura commended the Government of Sri Lanka on the progress of the economic reform program and the implementation of robust programs.
He has emphasized the need to maintain strong ownership by protecting Sri Lanka’s achievements since the beginning of the International Monetary Fund program.
Here the recent socio-economic developments and the commitment made by Sri Lanka to ensure the integrity and stability of the macroeconomic policies and reforms undertaken under the program were highlighted.
A meeting was also held between Dr. Krishnamurthy Subramanian, Executive Director for India and Sri Lanka and the Minister of State.
A delegation, including the Minister of State for Finance Shehan Semasinghe, is participating for this purpose.
Simultaneously, the Minister of State for Finance has joined the discussion with the Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU) on the stability, growth and investment opportunities of the Sri Lankan economy.
The discussion focused on Sri Lanka’s opportunities for investors and how sustainable economic growth can be achieved through strategic investments in various sectors including education, tourism, renewable energy, agriculture and technology.
The International Monetary Fund’s program and current macro-economic agenda for Sri Lanka is also discussed here, including how recent economic and other reforms have translated into results.
The forum concluded with participants, stakeholders and global partners keen to increase international understanding and cooperation to expand opportunities in the Sri Lankan economy.
In the meantime, the Finance Minister has also discussed with Mr. Parameswaran Iyer, Executive Director of the World Bank for India and Sri Lanka during this visit.
Here the Government of Sri Lanka has been commended for implementing the series of difficult reforms and the discussion ended by informing about the various internal restructurings of the World Bank and how these changes can benefit countries like Sri Lanka and assuring Sri Lanka of its utmost support.
