Deputy Minster of Finance, Sarath Amunugama on Wednesday slammed the US interference in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) saying it was deplorable.
Sri Lanka has requested for a US$ 1.9 billion loan under the IMF’s stand by arrangement facility. The announcement of the request was made by the Central Bank in early March. However, the loan has not been forthcoming so far.
The Deputy Minister of Finance said the delay is due to the US pushing a “political agenda” inside the Fund. “President Obama is very badly misinformed. There is something very wrong with the US State Department or the way they get their information, because for the first time, in a very ugly way, the US is trying to bring a palpably political agenda into the IMF.
This should be deplored by all members,” said the Minister speaking at a seminar on ‘Protecting the Poor in Crisis’ organised by the Institute of Policy Studies and the World Bank on Wednesday.
The Minster said the technical aspects of the loan have been met by Sri Lanka and the delay in the loan is due to US interference.
“The US has no business obstructing a project that is technically sound on the basis of their misinformation. This is an unacceptable case of the bullies trying to run the World Bank and the IMF,” said Minister Amunugama. Local economists say the urgency for the IMF loan has now reduced because of increased foreign exchange inflows since the end of the war. However, larger inflows are needed to lift the country well clear of a foreign exchange crisis.
“Foreign exchange inflows have increased. These are small amounts but they have helped bring some temporary relief. But we still have a very difficult foreign exchange situation. Our exports have reduced sharply and our trade deficit has widened badly,” a senior lecturer of economics at the University of Colombo, Dr Sirimal Abeyratne told the Sunday Times FT.
Foreign exchange inflows of about US$ 1 billion would be required to see the country on relatively safe grounds, he said. |
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