3 hours Ago By Thilina Walpola
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) will announce dates for the Third Review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) with Sri Lanka, once the institution’s delegation, currently in Sri Lanka, returns, Julie Kozack, Director of the Communications Department – IMF, told journalists at a press conference held in New York on Thursday (03). Answering questions posed by journalists about the future of the IMF agreement with Sri Lanka, Kozack said Sri Lanka has performed strongly with regards to the programme. “On 12 June 2024, the IMF Executive Board completed the 2024 Article IV Consultation, and the Second Review, under the EFF programme on Sri Lanka, providing the country with immediate access to about $336 million to support its economic policies and reforms.
Programme performance is strong, and reform efforts are bearing fruit in terms of reviving economic growth, lowering inflation, boosting reserves and improving revenue mobilization,” she said. However, important vulnerabilities and uncertainties do remain, and this means that sustaining reform momentum is critical, Kozack said. She said that at present, a high-level team, led by the Fund’s Director of the Asia Pacific Department, Krishna Srinivasan, is currently visiting Colombo to meet with President Dissanayake and his new economic team.
“The delegation is discussing with the authorities the latest economic developments and their economic reform objective. Dates for the Third Review under the EFF will be announced in due course and this delegation will communicate when their visit concludes. And we will have more information for you at that time,” she told journalists.
Responding to a question on the bondholders, she said that on 18 September, Sri Lanka and the international bondholder representatives reached an agreement in principle. “This is subject to confirmation of comparability of treatment by Sri Lanka’s Official Creditor Committee, and this does represent some significant progress in Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring process,” she said..
