IFC evaluating nearly US $ 250mn investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s private sector

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, is evaluating nearly US $ 250 million worth of investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s private sector.

“We are currently evaluating perspective investments of almost a quarter of billion dollars in Sri Lanka,” IFC Country Manager Amina Arif revealed.

Addressing Sri Lanka Investment and Business Conclave 2019, organised by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, in Colombo yesterday, she said that these investments include a wide range of sectors, including tourism, financial services and infrastructure.

Arif noted that IFC has invested over US $ 1.3 billion since 1970s in Sri Lanka’s private sector, to promote inclusive growth.

“We have a 50-year successful track record in Sri Lanka and we have invested over US $ 1.3 billion across sectors, including infrastructure, telecom, tourism, energy and health,” she said.
As half of Sri Lanka’s GDP is generated by SMEs, she stressed that the country needs to address the barriers to access credit, for SMEs to drive the economic growth.

Further, she also remarked that the restrictions on female participation in the country’s labour workforce remain a growth constraint for the country.

As Sri Lanka’s female labour force participation rate remains below half of male labour force participation, due to various constraints, Arif noted that IFC has launched the largest gender programme on its platform in Sri Lanka.