Agreement in principle on commercial debt restructuring is a game changer: Economist

In reference to Sri Lanka agreeing in principle on the restructuring of commercial debts (ISB), Chairman of Advocata Institute Murtaza Jafferjee said it was a game changer on the path to debt sustainability.

He said there is a lot of political discourse on the need to renegotiate debt sustainability analysis, it cannot be done.

Making his remarks to the media, he said Sri Lanka is now under selective credit rating, and it will probably take a few more months probably to complete the whole process. After that, he said there would be a rating action on Sri Lanka.

“Getting an investable rating is fundamental to our economic rating. It is important to ensure that our debt carrying capacity is improved before 2028 so that we gain access to the international market,” he said.

He said the most important criterion is to ensure that the country’s economy is growing.

“That will require productivity-enhancing investments to come in,” he said. He added that most investors had been stepping out of Sri Lanka since 2020, and the current selective default status is a major deterrent for major money to come in.