President Anura Kumara Dissanayake emphasized that Sri Lanka will never be allowed to fall into an economic crisis similar to that experienced in 2022, despite concerns expressed by some that such a situation could recur in the country.
The President made these remarks this morning (22) while attending a ceremony to mark the resumption of construction of the Nintavur Cultural Centre in Ampara.
Addressing the gathering, President Dissanayake stated that although the current situation occurred in Sri Lanka due to the ongoing Middle East crisis, which is an external crisis, the government possesses the strength to manage the situation.
He noted that the expectation of the mandate given to the current government by the people was to build a strong economy, not to allow racism, punish corrupt people, build a country where the law applies equally to all, and curtail the excessive privileges enjoyed by politicians, adding that the government has already made significant progress in this regard.
The President further stressed that if the responsibility of building a country where the law applies equally to all is not fulfilled under the current administration, it would not be achieved under any other government either. He added that the law is now being enforced irrespective of a person’s power, wealth, or social status.
He also stated that the government has taken measures to abolish unlimited privileges granted to politicians, including pension entitlements, while transforming politicians into a group that works for the public.
Commenting further on the prevailing economic situation, the President said the government had intervened to provide relief to the public during recent crises, including the impact of Cyclone Ditwah and the tensions arising from the Middle East conflict.
“We are a government that takes care of the people during difficult times. We allocated substantial funds to provide relief to the people amid Cyclone Ditwah and the war situation in the Middle East.
“We strengthened the country’s economy. However, the war situation in the Middle East region started to escalate again. The value of dollars increased when importing fuel. The prices of all imported goods increased. Therefore, more dollars are flowing out today.
“The tourism industry, which was expected to bring dollars, has been affected, while certain export revenues have also declined. The US dollar has appreciated to some extent is comparison to the rupee. Some say that this is like 2022. It will not be like 2022.
“In 2022, we did not even have sufficient rupees, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) did not have dollars either. The current situation is not like that. Today, there is a shortage of dollars in the market. The CBSL now holds nearly USD 7 billion in reserves. But at that time, CBSL had only around 50 million US dollars in reserves. We will get an additional 700 million dollars soon. Then we will have a significant dollar reserve.
“However, the economy must be managed systematically. We will never allow any shortage of imported fuel, gas, milk powder, or fertilizer. I can assure you of that. In the past, the country experienced shortages of fuel, milk powder, gas, and fertilizer, but such a situation will not recur.
“But we have some pressure, and we must manage it. We faced problems within the country. We faced Cyclone Ditwah. It is an internal problem. However, this is a war situation in the Middle East region that is beyond our control. We can face this too.
“Now many people are trying to create opinions, saying that this is like 2022. Remember that it will not happen. We are solving that problem. We have earned rupees. That is why today, at the request of both government and opposition representatives of this area, we were able to allocate funds for the construction of this cultural center.”
