Ravi K questions Govt on IMF programme outcomes, future plans

Colombo, June 9 (Daily Mirror) - Opposition MP Ravi Karunanayake today sought clarification from the Government on the outcomes of Sri Lanka’s International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme and the country’s economic strategy beyond the current arrangement.

The questions come after the IMF Executive Board approved the combined Fifth and Sixth Reviews under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF), enabling the release of a further tranche of approximately US$ 695 million to Sri Lanka.

Raising the matter in Parliament, Karunanayake noted that the IMF agreement is due to lapse in seven months and called on the Government to disclose whether it has assessed the economic, social and fiscal outcomes of the IMF-EFF programme entered into in 2023.

He questioned whether such an assessment had determined that the objectives of the programme had been achieved, and requested details of those objectives and the extent to which they had been met.

The UNP parliamentarian also sought to know whether the Government believes the sacrifices borne by the public through higher taxes, increased fuel and electricity tariffs, and the rising cost of living have translated into improved living standards and economic well-being.

Karunanayake further queried whether the economic growth, employment generation, foreign investment inflows and export expansion envisioned at the outset of the IMF-supported programme had materialised, and if not, the reasons for any shortcomings.

He also requested information on whether the Government has evaluated the impact of IMF-backed reforms on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), self-employed individuals, salaried workers and vulnerable groups, and sought the findings of any such assessment.

The MP asked whether the Government considers Sri Lanka to have achieved sufficient economic stability and debt sustainability to continue its recovery without entering into a new IMF arrangement.

In the event that a further IMF programme is not being considered, Karunanayake called on the Government to outline its alternative strategy for reducing the cost of living, maintaining economic stability, sustaining growth, preserving debt sustainability and safeguarding public welfare.

He also questioned how such a strategy would achieve outcomes in the future that, in his view, had not been fully realised during the current IMF programme period.

Furthermore, the MP requested details of the total cost of Sri Lanka’s IMF programme, including capital and interest payments at maturity, and called for the tabling of annual foreign debt service obligations from 2028 to 2048, including principal and interest payments and the annual US dollar requirements for servicing the country’s external debt.