China must cooperate to restructure Sri Lanka debt -Samantha Power

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Samantha Power says that it is imperative that all of Sri Lanka's creditors, most notably the People's Republic of China, cooperate in the debt restructuring process openly and on comparable terms with each other.

She noted that as Sri Lanka seeks to emerge from this economic crisis, the United States – as a creditor and as a member of the Paris Club – stands ready to participate in the restructuring of Sri Lanka's debt.

"When debt becomes unsustainable, as it so clearly has in Sri Lanka, the stakes of that cooperation can mean the difference between life or death, prosperity or poverty," the Former US Ambassador to the UN said speaking to reporters in Colombo on Sunday (11).

She also said that it is important in changing the habits that gave rise to the accumulation of such debt in the first place, not only of restructuring debt.

"As Sri Lanka's largest export market, I think we uniquely can appreciate the value of all that Sri Lanka has to offer, the value of Sri Lankan industry, the value of apparel, the value of its burgeoning technology sector, its burgeoning renewable efforts in energy. So, I think it's important not only to get through this crisis, and this is, of course, in keeping with the staff level deal that has just been done with the IMF, to lay a much more stable foundation for responsible borrowing and responsible balance of trade, and productive balance of trade going forward," she added.

Administrator Samantha Power also said that Sri Lanka's vibrant civil society must have the space that they need, to raise their voices and hold the government accountable. 

"This is not intention with economic stability. It is the means by which the government will obtain insight into what is working and what is not working at the grassroots level. International investor confidence will increase as the government tackles corruption and proceeds with long sought governance reforms. As citizens see the government visibly following through on the commitment to bring about meaningful change, that in turn will increase societal support for the tough economic reforms ahead," she noted.