COLOMBO: Sri Lanka is to streamline and strengthen its debt management amidst rising debt totalling Rs.7.18 trillion (US$55.19 billion) at the end of March this year, official sources disclosed. According to Finance Ministry officials, the government will borrow up to Rs.519.9 billion ($3.5 billion) from foreign sources via syndicated loans, sovereign bonds and sukuk (Islamic) bonds within the next few months. A new unified debt management unit will be set up at the ministry with the support of the World Bank to streamline and strengthen the management process in an efficient and transparent manner, it was revealed at the Cabinet Committee on Economic Management meeting held in Colombo recently.
The new unit will facilitate the implementation of the government’s policy reforms under the proposed Sri Lanka competiveness development policy loan by the World Bank and Japan International corporation Agency (JICA.). Government officials said it will also oversee the process of repealing the Strategic Development Act No. 38 of 2014 ensuring that the existing beneficiaries and those that the government has already agreed to extend the provisions of the act will remain unchanged. In the meantime the Monetary Board has been directed to submit detailed quarterly reports on the issue of domestic and foreign bonds to Parliament. A Committee on Economic Activities is also to be set up to submit a quarterly report on the economy including the foreign reserve position to Parliament, one official said.
