A special meeting was recently convened at the Sri Lankan Embassy in Washington, DC, to discuss the effective and streamlined implementation of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Sri Lanka.
The meeting, held at the invitation of Ambassador Mahinda Samarasinghe, was attended by IMF Deputy Managing Director and Head of Policy for Asia and Sri Lanka, Kenji Okamura, along with senior representatives from both the IMF and Sri Lanka.
Key discussions centered on ensuring the successful execution of the EFF program and the timely disbursement of the fourth tranche of the $2.9 billion facility allocated to Sri Lanka.
In response, Kenji Okamura and the IMF delegation reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Sri Lanka’s efforts to advance the program.
Ambassador Samarasinghe, in his remarks, outlined the position of Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and provided an overview of the country’s socio-political and economic situation. He emphasized the President’s commitment to continuing the IMF program while prioritizing the reinforcement of a people-centered social safety net. The Ambassador also underscored the urgency of releasing the fourth tranche of financial assistance to Sri Lanka.
IMF attendees included Krishna Srinivasan, Asia-Pacific Director; Peter Breuer, Senior Operations Manager for Sri Lanka; Sanjay Pant, Deputy Director for Asia-Pacific; and Chad Steinberg, Advisor to the IMF Deputy Managing Director.
The Sri Lankan delegation was represented by Mahinda Siriwardena, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance; Ajith Abeysekera, Director General of External Resources; Kapila Senanayake, Director General of Fiscal Policy; and P.K. Harischandra, IMF Sri Lanka Representative – Alternate Executive Director. Also present were Rohana Arogolla, Head of Mission at the Sri Lankan Embassy, and Charitha Yattogoda, Head of the Commercial Section.
