"The banking sector can make a huge contribution towards a production economy" - President Gotabaya Rajapaksa -

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has requested the banking sector to deviate from conventional thinking and practice to support the country's striving to rebuild the economy badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. "The government was able to keep the corona virus under control. The biggest challenge we face right now is to rebuild the collapsed economy,' President Gotabaya Rajapaksa told the banking sector representatives. "It will take a long time for the apparel industry to recover. The tourism industry also has suffered a serious setback. A very large amount of revenue and jobs have been lost. The old economic model based largely on imports is no longer viable. We must move towards a production economy. The banking sector can make a huge contribution to make this a success,” the President said. President Rajapaksa made these remarks during a meeting held at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday to discuss how to involve the banking sector in the implementation of Post-Corona Economic Growth and Development Programme while identifying the issues the banking sector confronts with. Governor of the Central Bank Professor W. D Lakshman, Deputy Governors, Chairmen and CEOs of state and private sector banks were present on this occasion, along with the Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa & Secretary to the President, P.B. Jayasundera. "A regular review should be conducted to monitor how loans are been utilized. Those who had defaulted loans in the past are not the poor but mostly the rich" President further added. The bank representatives who participated in the discussion expressed their support for the government's programme for economic revival. During this meeting, they presented some of the problems faced by the banking industry and agreed to discuss with the Central Bank and find solutions for them.