Sri Lanka needs to do more to achieve goals set up by IMF – Verité Research

The first review of the IMF Extended Fund Facility will be in September 2023 and Sri Lanka needs to do more to achieve the goals set up by the IMF, said Verité Research during their Economic Reporting Workshop conducted yesterday. “Sri Lanka would have to explain the reason for the delay in implementing some of them.”

The Verité Team member said that though Sri Lanka went to the IMF on 16 previous occasions the country had stalled them mid way.

“This is very evident during an election or after a change of government.”

For example in 2016 the tax reform program that was proposed was strapped. It was also said at the event that for the first time the IMF program has introduced reforms that should be adopted to minimize corruption. “In addition this is also the first time that Sri Lanka went to the IMF as a bankrupt country.”

It was also explained that going to the IMF is not to get finances but it is to give confidence to the intentional community and especially bilateral lenders. “Without an IMF program in progress any country will not have confidence to lend.”