Colombo: Sri Lanka has met all targets set under the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility programme, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said Thursday.
He made the remarks during a meeting with an International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation, which is visiting the island nation for a combined fifth and sixth review of Sri Lanka’s reform programme supported by the Extended Fund Facility (EFF).
The two tranches together are expected to release USD 700 million from a USD 2.9 billion bailout of 2023.
Dissanayake said that Sri Lanka has met all targets set under the programme and has reached a position of relative stability, the president’s office said in a statement.
Faced with external shocks in the form of the US and Israel’s conflict with Iran, Dissanayake said that every effort would be taken to minimise any adverse effects on the public.
The IMF team, which is in Sri Lanka till April 9, commended the economic progress achieved by the government, noting that the country has transitioned towards a more resilient economic footing through the achievement of growth targets, improved revenue management and the strengthening of foreign reserves.
Sri Lanka is looking to claim the two tranches together once the IMF team completes its current mission.
The island nation claimed the nearly USD 3 billion 48-month facility when it declared its first-ever sovereign default in 2022.
The programme, linked to strict austerity measures, became politically unpopular.