Colombo (LNW): The government of Sri Lanka is committed to take the difficult policy decisions needed for the restitution of the economy, said State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe, addressing the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in New York.
Representing Sri Lanka, State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe is participating in the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in New York from 17th April – 20th April.
Accordingly, participating in the “Financing for Development Forum” State Minister stated that the Government of Sri Lanka is committed to take the policy decisions which can be hard but are needed for economic recovery.
The state minister pointed out that as a result of events arising from the Covid epidemic to the Ukraine conflict and climate change, many countries are at risk of not being able to achieve the sustainable development goals targeted for the year 2030. The state minister also mentioned that lack of sufficient sustainable financing is the basic and main challenge faced by many states.
The state minister also pointed out the need for political attention at the global level to support countries in debt restructuring and debt sustainability, as well as fulfilling the pledges already made regarding official development assistance on international financial reform.
“I arrived in New York after attending the IMF and World Bank session on Sri Lanka’s reforms to revive the economy and the Extended Fund Facility which is approved last month. The Sri Lankan economy has faced the devastating effects of the multiple crises we are facing today. In addition, Sri Lanka has had many severe challenges in recent times. With the successful conclusion of the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund on the Extended Fund Facility, we have come to the Debt Restructuring Program in the framework of a Special Creditors Coordinating Committee consisting of India, France, and Japan. China has also affirmed that they will always support Sri Lanka to recover from the economic crisis. And we have identified the obstacles in building our economy in this credit system. Solving acute financial problems and ensuring sustainable development requires political will to take quick decisions. However, we look forward to developing the necessary bilateral and multilateral partnerships to accelerate this program”, he added.
