Sri Lanka confident of debt restructuring by IMF review in September

COLOMBO (News 1st); Minister of State for Finance Shehan Semasinghe said on Monday (19) that the government is confident that debt restructuring with all bilateral creditors of the country will be concluded by the first review of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Semasinghe said that the government has been engaging with bilateral creditors, including Japan, India, and China, and that they have been receptive to the government's proposals. He said that he is confident that an agreement will be reached by the September deadline for the first review of the IMF program.

Semasinghe also said that the government is confident of achieving economic growth of -3% in 2023, as projected by the IMF. He said that the government is taking steps to boost revenue and improve the efficiency of state-owned enterprises (SOEs).

On the issue of import restrictions, Semasinghe said that the government has relaxed some of the restrictions after consulting with stakeholders. He said that the government cannot ask for relief from friendly nations while imposing import restrictions.

The State Minister went on to note that the government is in the process of merging the Export Development Board (EDB) and Board of Investment (BOI) to create a single agency to promote trade and investment.

The government is also restructuring the operations of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), he noted while adding that the government is considering divesting non-strategic SOEs in order to improve their efficiency.