10 May 2024 09:14 am Views - 153
By Yohan Perera and Ajith Siriwardana
Sri Lanka is gradually moving towards an economic boom and is slated to achieve a three percent economic growth in 2024 while inflation has dropped to 1.5 percent already, President Ranil Wickremesinghe told Parliament yesterday.
“Rupee has been stabilized against the dollar and currently stands less than Rs 300” he said, making a review of the economy in the House. He said the foreign reserves of the country stands at $ 5 billion. “Additionally after many decades, there was a surplus of 0.6 percent of GDP in 2023 and interest rates have decreased to 10 percent and 13 percent over the year,” he added.
The President said the debt restructuring process is expected to be completed by the middle of this year. “The ultimate goal of the restructuring process is to push total debt services down to 95 percent of the GDP and to bring the foreign debt service to 4.5 percent.
“We have managed to provide relief for the people making use of the economic stability that has been achieved. We have managed to disburse a large amount of funds through Aswesuma and other social security schemes. Allowances paid to kidney patients and the elderly and differently abled have been increased by 50 percent.” he said.
He said the stability of the rupee had pushed the prices of imported essential items down. “Reduction of fuel, gas and milk powder and the reduction of interest rates had helped the entrepreneurs,” the President claimed.
However he said a salary increase could be considered only in 2025 depending on the situation pertaining to state revenue.
The President stressed that the country will have to move forward along with the governance diagnostic report of the IMF. “We will come up with a ‘Proceeds of Crimes Act’ to curb corruption in line with the governance diagnostic report. He also said an Economic Transformation Bill, Public Finance Bill and a Public Debt Management Bill will be introduced soon.
“I have repeatedly stressed for a long-term agreement between all stakeholders to resolve the present economic crisis. The opposition has supported us along with criticism during the last two years. Sri Lanka is in a better position today than what it was two years ago. Support of all political parties and even religious leaders is vital to transform the nation towards prosperity,” he stressed.