LNP – Port City will help raise non-debt forex inflows for Sri Lanka – CBSL Governor

The newly enacted legislative framework for the Port City Colombo project will help raise non-debt foreign exchange inflows for Sri Lanka, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) W.D. Lakshman said here on Monday.

Sri Lanka’s parliament on May 20 approved a bill to establish a service-oriented special economic zone in 269 hectares of land reclaimed from the ocean and annexed to the city of Colombo.

In an official statement on Monday, Lakshman dismissed speculation over Sri Lanka’s ability to service its debt as “unwarranted” and “harmful”.

Lakshman said Sri Lanka’s external debt has been brought down despite adverse conditions posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. He said the CBSL was judiciously managing imports and foreign reserves.