IMF gets blamed for the mess created by politicians - Nepali economist

Nepali economist and Member of Parliament Dr. Swarnim Waglé says the International Monetary Fund (IMF) gets blamed for the mess created by politicians when the government implements unpopular policies to comply with the conditions set by the global lender for the bailout package.

Dr. Waglé, an eminent Nepali economist Member of Nepal’s Federal Parliament, made these remarks while speaking to ‘At HydePark’ on Ada Derana 24.

When asked about his opinions on the reason as to why the IMF’s bailout package of USD 2.9 billion under the 48-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) is unpopular among the locals, the Nepali parliamentarian said the country’s leadership must do a better job of explaining the circumstances to the members of the public.

Dr. Waglé pointed out that Sri Lanka had to go to the IMF because no one else was going to come forward to help.

By the time the country turned to the IMF for help, it was already in deep economic trouble, so, the IMF gets blamed for a lot of the mess that the politicians created, Dr. Waglé added. When a country is in a real mess, he said ultranationalism often gets in the way, and opined that this radical loyalty and devotion can become a detriment to the country.

Speaking further, Dr. Waglé underscored the importance of Sri Lanka fulfilling its promises made to the IMF under the 48-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program for a USD 2.9 billion bailout package.

The economist said the conditions set by the IMF are ‘necessary’. Once the country signs and seals the deal, it is imperative to follow through to give the notion that Sri Lanka is deeply considering the implementation of crisis measures to bounce back, despite having halted all the previous IMF packages mid-way.

When asked about Sri Lanka’s progress in respect of economic recovery and whether the reforms and policies being undertaken are adequate, the Nepali economist said the island nation “could do a lot more” to consolidate its public finances, highlighting that tax-to-GDP ratio remains relatively low while tax exemptions are rife and tax collection is not strong enough.

However, the debt restructuring process has seen some improvement, he added.

Dr. Waglé also commended Sri Lanka’s measures to bilaterally engage with countries outside the South Asian region to gain preferential trade access, which he said would be advantageous for the island nation’s export products.