Sri Lanka’s last chance for progress – President

President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Thursday urged the business community to grab this opportunity to work with the government to achieve lasting stability as this is the last chance for Sri Lanka's recovery. 

"This is our last chance. Make up your mind to grow and press the accelerator to the floor,"" the President said at a high-level dialogue on the “IMF and beyond”, at the Galle Face Hotel. The Sunday Times and Sunday Lankadeepa were the media partners of the event which drew a representative audience from the business community.

He highlighted the missed opportunities over the years as a result of opposition to forward thinking policies that pushed Sri Lanka backwards whereas similar policies adopted by other regional states has led them to where they are today like South Korea and Singapore.

He called for a move towards a digital economy.

State Minister of Finance Ranjith Siyambalapitiya admitted their own follies in rejecting reforms something they are pushing for  today.

He said the President may be laughing at this statement since these same reforms were proposed 20 years but had succumbed under populist policies for mere political gains. (SD)