Key economic info not reaching across Sri Lanka-Central Bank
View(s):The Central Bank’s various decisions on the economy is not adequately reaching out to those conversant only in Sinhala and Tamil (the vernacular media) languages, said it’s Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe.
Speaking to newspaper editors this week, he said that while sufficient information is reaching out to the English language audience, key economic decisions are not getting across to the Sinhala and Tamil residents in the country. “We need to address this issue and hope to get your support,” he said during a dialogue with newspaper editors on Wednesday, adding that key economic developments are not reaching out to a larger segment of the population.
Fielding requests and issues, he agreed that there is a need for a Central Bank spokesperson or officials in specialised areas who would be accessible to the media at all times. “We need someone who is 24/7 available to the media,” one newspaper editor said.
In the meantime, the Central Bank is revamping its website to make it more user-friendly and also setting up various whatsapp groups to increase media access to the banking regulator. Quarterly workshops for the media with online access are also being arranged.
Answering questions on various financial scams, he said the problem is mostly to do with Sri Lankans responding to these scams by sharing password and OTP (One-time-password) (blindly without checking) while the authorities are regularly advising the public to be aware of these scams and not to fall victim to that. “Earlier it was pyramid schemes; now it’s whatsapp scams,” he said.
On the foreign debt restructuring process, he said most of the work has been completed while what remains is, among others, signing of agreements with individual countries which would eventually become new loan agreements, expected to be completed in first half 2025.
Vehicle imports are being gradually permitted in three phases and the Central Bank has enough foreign reserves to meet these requirements, the Governor said adding, “new businesses, new industries need vehicles” particularly in the context of low interest rates enabling more new businesses.
While the economy (GDP) growth is expected to reach 5 per cent this year, the government’s revenue collection, for the first time ever, is set to meet its annual target.
On Central Bank independence which became a reality this year, it was stated that now there are no government representatives on the bank’s governing board, there is no fiscal dominance by the authorities and accountability has been enhanced among other pluses.
Asked about depositors being badly affected by low interest rates for their deposits, he said some countries have interest rates as low as 2 per cent and savers in those countries don’t rely on interest income for their daily needs.
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