Sri Lankan president doubles down on economic reforms with ‘balanced approach’

ANKARA

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake urged a delegation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday to strike a balance with its economic recovery program that addresses people’s needs.

"Met with the IMF delegation today to discuss Sri Lanka’s economic recovery. I stressed the need for a balanced approach that addresses citizen hardships and restores public trust," Dissanayake said in a post on X.

Tackling child poverty and malnutrition, supporting the differently abled and fighting corruption with stringent reforms will be the government’s focus, he added.

He reaffirmed his government’s readiness to collaborate with the IMF to advance the debt-ridden country's economic recovery within the context of the mandate, the local news site NewsWire reported.

Dissanayake met with the IMF delegation in the capital Colombo to discuss the next steps in the IMF program hours after choosing his Cabinet after winning a two-thirds majority in parliamentary elections last week.
He assured that under his leadership, social spending allocations would be utilized effectively, with priority given to combating child poverty and malnutrition and providing better support for differently abled people.

Sri Lanka has been undergoing a financial program by the IMF following a default in 2022.

The IMF delegation, led by Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka Peter Breuer, is on a week-long trip to the island nation to hold talks with the new government and conduct another review of Sri Lanka’s $2.9 billion bailout.