Sri Lanka and France sign debt restructuring implementation letters
July 25, 2025 12:40 pm
The Implementation Letter on Debt Restructuring between the Government of the French Republic and the Government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, related to the External Debt Restructuring Process, was signed on 24 July 2025.
In line with the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the Office of the Controller of Creditors (OCC) on 26 June 2024 for the external debt restructuring of Sri Lanka, the bilateral agreement on debt restructuring between the Government of France and the Government of Sri Lanka was signed on 16 June 2025, the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development said in a statement.
Following the official signing of the bilateral agreement, the Ministry of Finance of Sri Lanka, as the authorized representative of the Sri Lankan Government, was to conclude Implementation Letters with the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), Bpifrance Assurance Export, and the Banque de France, which act as authorized representatives of the Government of France in executing the provisions of the bilateral agreement.
Accordingly, the signing of the Implementation Letter with the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) took place at the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development on 24 July 2025.
The Implementation Letter was signed by Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka, and Yazid Bensaïd, Country Director of Agence Française de Développement (AFD), on behalf of the Government of France.
Subsequently, Implementation Letters related to Bpifrance Assurance Export and Banque de France were also signed. The signing of these Implementation Letters marks the conclusion of the debt restructuring process between the Governments of Sri Lanka and France, the statement added.
Consequently, the Government of Sri Lanka will be able to resume temporarily suspended loan financing and secure financing for new projects from all lending agencies of the Government of France, facilitating the successful completion of development projects.
