IMF, Sri Lanka reach staff-level agreement for USD 347 mn in financing

Colombo, Oct 9 (PTI) The IMF Thursday said it has reached a staff-level agreement with the Sri Lankan government on the fifth review of the island nation's 2023 bailout.

"Once the review is approved by the IMF Executive Board, Sri Lanka will have access to about USD 347 million in financing," the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a statement.

Commending the economic reforms, the IMF said recruitment at the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) should be accelerated and CIABOC’s independence safeguarded in line with the Anti-Corruption Act.

"Structural reforms will be key to lifting Sri Lanka’s potential growth," it added.

The economic reforms implemented so far "have continued to support the recovery, with inflation progressing to target, reserves accumulating, and real GDP growth and revenue mobilisation outperforming expectations".

Amid the island’s unprecedented economic crisis, the IMF in March 2023 approved a nearly USD 3 billion facility to assist Sri Lanka’s “efforts to durably restore macroeconomic stability by restoring fiscal and debt sustainability".

The facility helped Sri Lanka revive its bankrupt economy by building its reserves and successfully negotiating debt restructuring with external creditors. PTI CORR ZH ZH