(COLOMBO, LANKAPUVATH) –The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says it will review its agreement with Sri Lanka after the Parliamentary elections scheduled for April.
Gerry Rice of the Communications Department of the IMF said that the seventh and final review of the current Fund supported program with Sri Lanka is scheduled to take place after mid-April.
He said that the IMF will look at the situation with Sri Lanka at that time.
” We will be looking at this situation then and thereafter. We have a long history of engagement with Sri Lanka of course. I can say that during the recent staff visit, the authorities expressed interest in a range of options for future engagement with the Fund but the specifics of that will be discussed after this next review in mid-April,” he said.
Earlier this month a staff team from the IMF led by Manuela Goretti concluded a visit to Colombo where they met with the new administration and discuss its policy agenda.
At the conclusion of the staff visit, Ms. Goretti said that the IMF staff team had constructive discussions with the Sri Lankan authorities on recent economic developments and the country’s economic reform agenda.
She said that given the high level of public debt and refinancing needs in the country, ensuring macroeconomic stability calls for fiscal consolidation, prudent monetary policy, and sustained efforts to build international reserves.
Goretti said that ambitious structural and institutional reforms remain critical to raise the country’s growth potential and promote inclusiveness.
