Sri Lanka is ‘bankrupt’ and the worst economic crisis is expected to continue until at least the end of next year, Prime Minister Ranil Wikremesinghe told lawmakers on Tuesday.
Wickremesinghe told lawmakers that negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to revive the country’s ‘collapsed’ economy were difficult because they joined the talks as a bankrupt country.
As such, Sri Lanka will have to submit a debt sustainability plan to the IMF separately.
They will only be able to reach an agreement if the world financial organization is satisfied with the plan.
Sri Lanka experienced its worst financial crisis in seven decades after its foreign exchange reserves plunged to record lows causing the government to run out of foreign currency to import essential goods including food, medicines and fuel.
Schools have been closed and fuel has been restricted to essential services, resulting in hundreds of people in major cities queuing for hours to buy fuel.
