News
Milinda: Sri Lanka should stabilise economy, relax import restrictions
It was important for Sri Lanka to restructure its debt and relax import restrictions by the end of this year, Sri Lankan High Commissioner to India, Milinda Moragoda told News First in an interview on Thursday night.
Sri Lanka had suspended its external debt repayments and the import of many goods, which are against some agreements the country has signed, and the international community had allowed it to do so because it had entered into an agreement with the IMF, he said.
“We have not imported many items for two or three years. We can’t go on like this. Our economy has shrunk significantly in the last 18 months. We are witnessing the beginning of economic stabilisation. The Central Bank is working on keeping interest rates at a level that won’t trigger
inflation. The value of the rupee is determined in a controlled environment. Things are in a flux,” he said.Moragoda said that reducing demand was an integral part of stabilisation. “However, this is easier said than done as it is a painful process.”
“The demand for fuel has dropped. This was done in a somewhat artificial manner. However, when we recover, we will face new challenges. I think we can only leave this controlled environment by the end of the year. Then we will see what the real value of the rupee is, we will see what the market determined interest rates would be. Until then the government is trying to stabilize the economy with IMF help,” he said.
Moragoda said that the country also needs economic growth. The expected economic growth for 2024, is about 1.4 percent, he said. Given that the economy has shrunk over 10 percent in the last 18 months, this would not account for much, Moragoda said.
“We need to create new jobs,” he added.
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Transport, Highways, and Urban Development to award the contract for printing and supplying vehicle number plates for the Department of Motor Traffic for a period of five (5) years to M/s South Asian Technologies based on the recommendations of the High-Level Standing Procurement Committee and the Procurement Appeal Board.
The National Lotteries board has been established subject to the Finance Act No. 11 of 1963. Having identified the requirement of amending that act which was imposed around 62 years to cater the current requirements of the lottery market, the Cabinet of Mnisters at their meeting held on 14.02.2017 granted approval to draft a new bill for the purpose.
Accordingly, the National Lotteries Board has recognized further amendments to be performed to the fundamental draft bill prepared by the Legal Draftsmen.
Therefore, the Cabinet of Ministers granted approval for the
resolution furnished by the President in his office as the Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development to direct the Legal Draftsmen to finalize the formulation of the draft bill for the National Lotteries Board as soon as possible including the proposed new amendments as well.
The Werahara office of the Department of Motor Traffic performs issuance of temporary driving licenses in this country based on the driving licenses issued overseas, and measures have been initiated to render the service from a service window of the Department of Motor Traffic established at the Bandaranayake International Airport from 03.08.2025.
The fees charged for issuing temporary driving licenses have been published in Motor Vehicles (Driving License Levy) Regulations No. 3 of 2022 prepared under the provisions of the Motor Traffic (Authority 203) Act.
But, as the fee of Rupees 2,000/- charged for the service is not sufficient, the requirement of amending the regulations has been recognized.
The regulations for introducing the revised fees have been published in the government extraordinary gazette
notification No. 2463/04 dated 17.11.2025. Therefore, the Cabinet of Ministers granted approval to the resolution furnished by the Minister of Transport, Highways and Urban Development to
submit the regulations to the Parliament for its concurrence.
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M/s South Asian Technologies awarded contract to supply vehicle number plates
A new act for National Lotteries Board to be introduced
Motor Vehicles (Driving License Levy) Regulations No. 3 of 2022 to be amended
Mrs. P. K. L. S. Panduwawala appointed to the post of Surveyor General
Implementing the programme to provide concession for pepper, coffee and cardamom plantations affected by the disaster
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
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