COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s new president took office with a mandate to bring relief to citizens still burdened by the remnants of the country’s worst-ever economic crisis. Now comes the hard part: Getting the lenders to play along.
Anura Kumara Dissanayake (pic) has vowed to reopen negotiations with the International Monetary Fund over a US$3 billion bailout to ease the burden on the poor following government spending cuts and tax hikes tied to the loan. Investors are worried that drawn out negotiations could delay payments or even threaten the loan program itself.
