LNP – Sri Lanka unlikely to seek IMF bailout;Cabinet fails to reach consensus

Sri Lanka is unlikely to seek a bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) with the Cabinet failing to reach a consensus last evening.

Government sources told Daily Mirror last night that most members of the Cabinet did not support seeking financial support from the IMF.

Sources said that a majority in the Cabinet are against the pre-conditions expected to be proposed by the IMF for the funding.

As a result, Government sources said that Sri Lanka is most likely to decide not to seek an IMF bailout.

IMF’s mission chief for Sri Lanka, Masahiro Nozaki had told Daily Mirror via email in late December that the staff is still ready to discuss the option if requested.

Nozaki said a staff team from the IMF visited Colombo from December 7–20 to conduct the 2021 Article IV consultation with Sri Lanka.

Under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, the IMF holds regular bilateral discussions with all member countries to review economic developments and policies.

Following approval by IMF Management the IMF’s Executive Board discusses a Staff Report based on these discussions, Nozaki said.

The Cabinet had last month also discussed an IMF bailout but had not reached a decision at that meeting if to seek financial support from the global agency.