brand logo

NPP urges proper plan if going to IMF

06 Feb 2022

The National People’s Power (NPP) said yesterday (6) that if the Government intends to restructure its debt as a solution to the current debt crisis, then it must first formulate a plan before approaching the International Monetary Fund (IMF). “The question is not whether we are going to the IMF or not, but whether we are going to go for a restructuring of debt or not. If they are going to restructure debt, then they must think of the terms of the restructuring, decide on a time period, and the proper economic policies. They must first make this plan and then go to the IMF – they cannot just go and sit there and wait for them to solve the problem,” NPP Parliamentarian Dr. Harini Amarasuriya said at a press conference held yesterday. She stressed that it is important to understand what “going to the IMF” means. “The IMF will discuss with us and see what our plan is. Then they will give a guarantee to the international community about our plan – that they trust us and believe that we will intervene properly to meet our economic needs. Thus, the Government has a big responsibility for the restructuring plan. Inevitably, one party has to carry the weight and burden of the debt restructuring programme – and which group of the population it will be is the Government’s responsibility,” she said. Furthermore, Dr. Amarasuriya criticised the recent “seemingly contradictory” statements made by Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa and Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal. Rajapaksa said last week that the Government of Sri Lanka has written to the IMF requesting technical assistance and a mission from the IMF will visit Sri Lanka in the near future to assess the country’s economic situation and provide a set of proposals for the way forward. However, the following day, Cabraal Tweeted saying that Rajapaksa’s comments were about a “routine technical assistant programme on macro fiscal capacity building for the Finance Ministry’s new Macro-Fiscal Unit” and “nothing else”. “How is this happening? We are facing a debt crisis and our foreign income is decreasing. The main thing is that the Government must build and maintain trust in its ability and stability. With every such statement that is made, the more that trust diminishes. The Sri Lankan public also has no trust in the Government. Dealing with the international community is not easy – they also have political goals and policies. Our Government is responsible for identifying our needs properly and then communicating that properly. Currently, we cannot see any management or co-ordination from our side,” said Dr. Amarasuriya.


More News..