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UK ready to consider financing assurances for Lanka to secure IMF deal
ECONOMYNEXT –The United Kingdom is “ready to consider” financing assurances to Sri Lanka to secure a 2.9 billion US dollar extended fund facility (EFF) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), a UK official said.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) Anne-Marie Trevelyan told the British parliament on Tuesday January 24 that the UK is fully supportive of the proposed Coordination Platform between Sri Lanka’s Paris Club and non-Paris Club creditors, which the British government believes represents the most efficient way to restore debt sustainability in Sri Lanka.
“Constructive engagement across creditors is vital to secure a prompt and comprehensive International Monetary Fund programme for Sri Lanka and ensure a sustainable economic recovery. As a member of the Paris Club, the UK stands ready to consider the necessary Financing Assurances to secure an Extended Financing Facility with the IMF in a timely manner,” she said.
Trevelyan was responding to a question posed by Conservative MP Bob Blackman to Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs James Cleverly on what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of a statement a previous statement from economists and academics calling on creditors to share the burden of debt restructuring for Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka is cautiously optimistic that the IMF bailout package will come through in the first quarter, with IMF board approval anticipated some time in March. India has already assured the IMF of its assistance to Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring plans, with a confirmation from China also expected in the coming weeks.
The island nation is going through its worst currency crisis in decades and the IMF loan would help unlock other avenues of financing that’s desperately needed.
An Officials’ Committee appointed under the chairmanship of the Secretary to the Prime Minister to review non-commercial state-owned institutions has recommended the consolidation of the Industrial Development Board, the National Enterprise Development Authority, and the Small Enterprise Development Division into a single entity.
Based on the aforementioned recommendations, policy approval was granted at the Cabinet Meeting held on 29-12-2025 to establish the Sri Lanka Industrial Transformation and Innovation Authority.
Accordingly, the Ministry of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development, in consultation with all relevant stakeholders and with technical assistance from the Asian Development Bank, has prepared a draft legal framework for this purpose.
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development to instruct the Legal Draftsman to draft a Bill to establish the “Sri Lanka Industrial Transformation and Innovation Authority” based on the said draft framework.
The Cabinet of Ministers approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs to appoint Iraj Chaminda Pathiraja, an officer in the Special Grade of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service to the post of Controller General of Immigration and Emigration on a permanent basis.
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Implementation of the recommendations of the Report submitted by the Presidential Commission appointed to Inquiry on the Easter Sunday attacks and the Then Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security.
Approval was granted at the Cabinet Meeting held on 17-05-2021 to implement the recommendations submitted by the Presidential Commission appointed to Inquire on the Easter Sunday attacks and to propose measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents, as well as the recommendations of the then Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security.
However, since no systematic, formal, and sustainable mechanism has yet been established to monitor the practical implementation of the said recommendations, there is currently no effective mechanism to evaluate the progress of the
implementation of the aforementioned recommendations.
Therefore, the need has been identified to establish a mechanism with a broad organized structure prioritizing public and national security, to ensure the successful implementation of the aforementioned recommendations and the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the President, in his capacity as the Minister of Defence, to appoint a committee comprising an expert in the field of counter-terrorism and national security along with the representatives of the relevant ministries and institutes under the supervision of the Presidential Secretariat.
Cabinet nod to establish ‘Sri Lanka Industrial Transformation and Innovation Authority ‘
Iraj Chaminda Pathiraja appointed Controller General of Immigration and Emigration
Implementation of the recommendations of the Report submitted by the Presidential Commission appointed to Inquiry on the Easter Sunday attacks and the Then Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security.
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