Sri Lanka\u2019s total bilateral debt earlier this year was estimated at $6.2 billion as of the end of 2020 by the IMF
\nwashington
\nThe International Monetary Fund said it will need \u201cadequate assurances\u201d from Sri Lanka\u2019s creditors for a new program as it prepares a visit to Colombo later this month.
\nThe goal of the visit is to make progress on a staff-level agreement for an aid package \u201cin the near term,\u201d to help the island nation weather a severe economic crisis, the IMF said on Friday.
\nStaff from the global lender will be in Colombo from August 24 to 31, the IMF said.
\n\u201cBecause Sri Lanka\u2019s public debt is assessed as unsustainable, approval by the IMF Executive Board of the Extended Fund Facility program would require adequate assurances by Sri Lanka\u2019s creditors that debt sustainability will be restored,\u201d the IMF said.
\nReuters reported on Thursday that Sri Lanka will ask Japan to invite the Indian Ocean island\u2019s main creditor nations, including China and India, to talks on bilateral debt restructuring.
\nThe loan package being negotiated with the IMF is for between $2 billion and $3 billion according to President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who said he would present an interim budget in September focusing on fiscal consolidation measures agreed with the IMF.
\nThe country of 22 million people is facing its most severe financial crisis since independence from Britain in 1948, resulting from the combined impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and economic mismanagement.
\nOrdinary Sri Lankans have been battling shortages for months amid crippling inflation and a devalued currency, stoking unprecedented mass protests. Thousands of people stormed the colonial-era presidential residence in Colombo, the commercial capital, in early July.
\nSri Lanka\u2019s total bilateral debt earlier this year was estimated at $6.2 billion as of the end of 2020 by the IMF. It also has $14 billion of international sovereign bond debt.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sri Lanka\u2019s total bilateral debt earlier this year was estimated at $6.2 billion as of the end of 2020 by the IMF washington The International Monetary Fund said it will need \u201cadequate assurances\u201d from Sri Lanka\u2019s creditors for a new program as it prepares a visit to Colombo later this month. The goal of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":278571,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-278554","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n