SL eyes $ 7 b inflows from multilateral partners

• Foreign Minister Ali Sabry says World Bank, ADB, and AIIB to assure support for SL
• Says move will pave the way to win confidence of key bilateral partners like JICA and KOICA
• Discusses reforms and progress made so far with ADB Executive Director for SL Sangmin Ryu
• Meets AIIB Vice President Urjith Patel to seek assistance for infrastructure development, renewable energy, SMEs

Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said Sri Lanka will likely see $ 7 billion inflows in multilateral and bilateral funding over four years, as the country had once again secured its confidence over the world post-IMF deal.

“Sri Lanka’s path to recovery from the unprecedented economic crisis has reflected positively in the eyes of the multilateral and bilateral partners after securing the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility,” he said on the sidelines of the 56th Asian Development Bank Annual Meeting in Incheon, Republic of Korea.

Against this backdrop, Minister Sabry said Sri Lanka is looking for $ 6-7 billion in assistance from all the multilateral partners including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) till 2027.

“To offset the foreign currency crunch we experience by 2027 and we come to normalcy. In between that time, the idea is to get around $ 6-7 billion through these multilateral agencies,” he added.

The Minister emphasised that it was important that the IMF, World Bank and ADB come in first to aid, as the move can win the confidence of the other key bilateral partners like JICA and KOICA.

“The idea is to continuously engage with them and allow them to monitor our progress and continue to partner. Hopefully, this will give the confidence to attract investors to relook at Sri Lanka,” he said.

The Minister also had a productive meeting with the ADB Executive Director for Sri Lanka Sangmin Ryu on country’s economic reforms and progress made so far.

Minister Sabry also met with the AIIB Vice President Urjith R. Patel on Tuesday to enhance assistance for infrastructure development and renewable energy sectors.

“AIIB has already extended us two loans on housing and landslide mitigation projects. During the COVID pandemic, the AIIB gave $ 180 million to support the banks for financial stability. Last year they extended us $ 100 million for re-purposing the housing and landslide project. Of that, $ 20 million has already been disbursed,” he added. 

In addition, the Minister said they are now exploring the possibility to get assistance to support the SMEs as the sector was most affected during the pandemic and the economic crisis.