Cabinet Spokesman verifies official reserve figures

Wednesday, 9 April 2025 00:08 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa

Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa yesterday responded to growing controversy over a statement made by Deputy Minister Nalin Hewage regarding the country’s official reserve levels at the time the new Government assumed office.

Addressing at the weekly post-Cabinet media briefing, he presented verified data sourced from the Central Bank, detailing the country’s reserve figures from September 2024 to March 2025.

“In September 2024 when we took office, the official reserves stood at $ 5.99 billion, in October it was at $ 6.47 billion, in November it was $ 6.45 billion and in December it was $ 6.12 billion. In January 2025, the reserves were at $ 6.06 billion, in February at $ 6.08 billion and in March it was at $ 6.51 billion,” he stated.

“If there has been any error, I request that these official figures released by the Central Bank be accepted,” Dr. Jayatissa said, asserting the importance of relying on official sources for economic data.

His comments come in response to Deputy Minister Hewage’s recent remarks at a public rally in Galle, where he claimed that when the National People’s Power (NPP) Government assumed office, the country’s official reserves were at as low as $ 20 million.

Hewage also claimed that the NPP-led Government had since increased the reserves to $ 6.19 billion at present.

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