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<p>Cash-strapped&nbsp;Sri&nbsp;Lanka&nbsp;will vote for its next president on Saturday (Sep 21) in an effective referendum on an unpopular International Monetary Fund (IMF) austerity plan enacted after the island nation's unprecedented financial crisis.</p>

<p>Officials in Colombo were seen escorted by armed personnel as they collected boxes to set up polling booths on Friday on the eve of the tightly contested election.&nbsp;</p>

<p>About 17 million of Sri Lanka's 22 million people are eligible to vote in the first election since protests against the economic hardships in 2022 forced then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country and later resign.</p>

<p>Sri Lanka's first-past-the-post system allows voters to cast three preferential votes for their chosen candidates, with the candidate securing 50 per cent of the votes or more declared winner. Whoever wins the election will have to ensure Sri Lanka gets its public finances in order, start repaying foreign creditors, attract investment and complete the four-year IMF programme.</p>

<p>President Ranil Wickremesinghe urged voters to give him a fresh mandate to continue with austerity measures he says stabilised the economy and ended months of food, fuel and medicine shortages.</p>

<p>He has restored calm to the streets after civil unrest spurred by the downturn in 2022 saw thousands storm the compound of his predecessor, who promptly fled the country.</p>

<p>"Decide if you want to go back to the period of terror, or progress", Wickremesinghe said.</p>

<p>But Wickremesinghe's tax hikes and other belt-tightening measures, imposed in line with a $2.9-billion IMF bailout, have left millions struggling.</p>

<p>Experts warn that&nbsp;Sri&nbsp;Lanka's economy is still vulnerable, with payments on the island's $46-billion foreign debt yet to resume since a 2022 government default.</p>

<p>"The election will largely be a referendum on how Wickremesinghe's government has handled the economic crisis and the ensuing modest recovery," the International Crisis Group said this week.</p>

<p>It added that many citizens were suffering "enormous hardship at the same time as Colombo cuts costs and takes other austerity measures perceived by the public as unfair".</p>

<p>As election rallies ended on Wednesday night after a 56-day campaign period, the country entered a "cooling off period" of two days ahead of Saturday's vote.</p>

<p>Some 17.1 million people are eligible to vote. Over 200,000 officials have been deployed to conduct the election which will be guarded by 63,000 police. Results are expected by Sunday.</p>

<p>Police spokesman Nihal Talduwa told reporters in Colombo that the campaign had been relatively peaceful with 464 polls-related complaints, but no serious crimes.</p>

<p><strong>Watch |&nbsp;Sri Lanka Presidential Elections: WION reports from the ground ahead of September 21 polls</strong></p>

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<h2><strong>Rising red star</strong></h2>

<p>Sri&nbsp;Lanka's crisis has proven an opportunity for the 55-year-old Dissanayaka, who has seen a surge of support based on his pledge to change the island's "corrupt" political culture.</p>

<p>"The 21st (voting day) will be the beginning of a long journey to completely change the system of governance in&nbsp;Sri&nbsp;Lanka," Dissanayaka told his rally decorated with red flags at a suburb of Colombo.</p>

<p>Analysts say he is likely to benefit from public anger over graft scandals and the chronic economic mismanagement that precipitated the unprecedented economic crisis.</p>

<p>"There is a significant number of voters trying to send a strong message... that they are very disappointed with the way this country has been governed," Murtaza Jafferjee of think tank Advocata told AFP.</p>

<p>Fellow opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, once dismissed as the princeling dynast of a former president assassinated in 1993 during the country's decades-long civil war, is also favoured to make a strong showing.</p>

<p>He vowed to ensure transparency in state procurements and fight endemic corruption.</p>

<p>The 57-year-old, a former ally and deputy of Wickremesinghe until he renounced his former leader in 2020, has campaigned on a pledge to secure concessions from the IMF.</p>

<p>"We will revise the unfair burden-sharing structure of the IMF-supported tax code revision that is forcing professionals to seek employment abroad," Premadasa said in his manifesto.</p>

<p>Official data showed that&nbsp;Sri&nbsp;Lanka's poverty rate doubled to 25 per cent between 2021 and 2022, adding 2.5 million people to those already living on less than $3.65 a day.</p>

<p>The IMF said reforms were beginning to pay off, with inflation below five per cent from a peak of 70 per cent at the height of the crisis, and growth slowly returning.</p>

<p>"A lot of progress has been made, but the country is not out of the woods yet," the IMF's Julie Kozack told reporters in Washington last week.</p>

<p>"It is important to safeguard those hard-won gains."</p>

<p><em>Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION audience.</em></p>


Cash-strapped Sri Lanka will vote for its next president on Saturday (Sep 21) in an effective referendum on an unpopular International Monetary Fund (IMF) austerity plan enacted after the island nation's unprecedented financial crisis.

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka will vote for its next president on Saturday (Sep 21) in an effective referendum on an unpopular International Monetary Fund (IMF) austerity plan enacted after the island nation's unprecedented financial crisis. Officials in Colombo were seen escorted by armed personnel as they collected boxes to set up polling booths on Friday on the eve of the tightly contested election. About 17 million of Sri Lanka's 22 million people are eligible to vote in the first election since protests against the economic hardships in 2022 forced then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country and later resign. Sri Lanka's first-past-the-post system allows voters to cast three preferential votes for their chosen candidates, with the candidate securing 50 per cent of the votes or more declared winner. Whoever wins the election will have to ensure Sri Lanka gets its public finances in order, start repaying foreign creditors, attract investment and complete the four-year IMF programme. President Ranil Wickremesinghe urged voters to give him a fresh mandate to continue with austerity measures he says stabilised the economy and ended months of food, fuel and medicine shortages. He has restored calm to the streets after civil unrest spurred by the downturn in 2022 saw thousands storm the compound of his predecessor, who promptly fled the country. "Decide if you want to go back to the period of terror, or progress", Wickremesinghe said. But Wickremesinghe's tax hikes and other belt-tightening measures, imposed in line with a $2.9-billion IMF bailout, have left millions struggling. Experts warn that Sri Lanka's economy is still vulnerable, with payments on the island's $46-billion foreign debt yet to resume since a 2022 government default. "The election will largely be a referendum on how Wickremesinghe's government has handled the economic crisis and the ensuing modest recovery," the International Crisis Group said this week. It added that many citizens were suffering "enormous hardship at the same time as Colombo cuts costs and takes other austerity measures perceived by the public as unfair". As election rallies ended on Wednesday night after a 56-day campaign period, the country entered a "cooling off period" of two days ahead of Saturday's vote. Some 17.1 million people are eligible to vote. Over 200,000 officials have been deployed to conduct the election which will be guarded by 63,000 police. Results are expected by Sunday. Police spokesman Nihal Talduwa told reporters in Colombo that the campaign had been relatively peaceful with 464 polls-related complaints, but no serious crimes. Watch | Sri Lanka Presidential Elections: WION reports from the ground ahead of September 21 polls × Rising red star Sri Lanka's crisis has proven an opportunity for the 55-year-old Dissanayaka, who has seen a surge of support based on his pledge to change the island's "corrupt" political culture. "The 21st (voting day) will be the beginning of a long journey to completely change the system of governance in Sri Lanka," Dissanayaka told his rally decorated with red flags at a suburb of Colombo. Analysts say he is likely to benefit from public anger over graft scandals and the chronic economic mismanagement that precipitated the unprecedented economic crisis. "There is a significant number of voters trying to send a strong message... that they are very disappointed with the way this country has been governed," Murtaza Jafferjee of think tank Advocata told AFP. Fellow opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, once dismissed as the princeling dynast of a former president assassinated in 1993 during the country's decades-long civil war, is also favoured to make a strong showing. He vowed to ensure transparency in state procurements and fight endemic corruption. The 57-year-old, a former ally and deputy of Wickremesinghe until he renounced his former leader in 2020, has campaigned on a pledge to secure concessions from the IMF. "We will revise the unfair burden-sharing structure of the IMF-supported tax code revision that is forcing professionals to seek employment abroad," Premadasa said in his manifesto. Official data showed that Sri Lanka's poverty rate doubled to 25 per cent between 2021 and 2022, adding 2.5 million people to those already living on less than $3.65 a day. The IMF said reforms were beginning to pay off, with inflation below five per cent from a peak of 70 per cent at the height of the crisis, and growth slowly returning. "A lot of progress has been made, but the country is not out of the woods yet," the IMF's Julie Kozack told reporters in Washington last week. "It is important to safeguard those hard-won gains." Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION audience.

Sri Lanka goes to polls for first time since 2022 economic crisis

<p>Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in an exclusive interview with WION’s diplomatic correspondent Sidhant Sibal, in Perth, thanked India for the economic support to his country when it was deeply mired in economic crisis.<br />
<br />
Speaking to WION, Wickremesinghe said that he is “thankful to India. Without India’s help we could not have survived and this is why we are also looking at closer relations between the two countries”.<br />
<br />
The president also revealed plans of IIT Madras establishing a campus in Sri Lanka, “most probably in Kandy”.<br />
<br />
“India came forward with an aid of almost $4 billion during our economic crisis. We are thankful to India as without that we could not have survived and this is why we are also looking at closer relations, and more trade,” he said.<br />
<br />
“The Indo-Lanka relationship is improving, and today we are looking at close economic ties and improving connectivity between the two countries.”<br />
<br />
“Indian companies like Adani are investing in Sri Lanka. We are discussing power connectivity and we have come to an agreement that it should be an undersea cable and will start working out the details. As far as land connectivity is concerned, we need a feasibility study and have appointed officials on both sides for coordination,” he added.<br />
<br />
In financial connectivity, talks are on for the implementation of UPI as well as the usage of Indian rupee in Sri Lanka, as it will help tourism.&nbsp;The FTA is already operational and now we are discussing how to advance it to a comprehensive economic and technology partnership, shared the Lankan president.</p>

<p>“India has helped us financially but we’d like to see Indian investments in Sri Lanka.<br />
A ministerial delegation visited India for IIT Madras setting up a campus in Sri Lanka, and we are in the process of identifying the location. But we’d like to take some existing buildings and start it next year,” he added.</p>

<p><strong>Also watch |&nbsp;Sri Lanka President thanks India for economic support; Plans for IIT Campus in Kandy</strong></p>

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<p>Referring to regional security, and worries over the visits of the Chinese vessels, Wickremesinghe said, “We have told India always is that we’ve kept Indian security in mind and we will not allow anything to happen that will be harmful to Indian security, and these are all hydrographical vessels. So we allowed them to come. We want to keep the big power rivalry out of the Indian Ocean. There should not be any rivalry which has an adverse impact on the Indian Ocean.”</p>

<p><br />
In response to a query on restructuring of debt from China, Wickremesinghe said the Chinese have also agreed to it.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/how-chinas-smokescreen-tricks-the-world-against-reforms-at-un-security-council-635950">How China’s ‘smokescreen’ tricks the world against reforms at UN Security Council</a></strong></p>

<p>Sharing his views on UNSC reforms, the president said, “We feel that the reforms must be done. India should be in the Security Council. But we want overall discussion where we, the smaller countries also have a say.”</p>


Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in an exclusive interview with WION’s diplomatic correspondent Sidhant Sibal, in Perth, thanked India for the economic support to his country when it was deeply mired in economic crisis.

Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in an exclusive interview with WION’s diplomatic correspondent Sidhant Sibal, in Perth, thanked India for the economic support to his country when it was deeply mired in economic crisis. Speaking to WION, Wickremesinghe said that he is “thankful to India. Without India’s help we could not have survived and this is why we are also looking at closer relations between the two countries”. The president also revealed plans of IIT Madras establishing a campus in Sri Lanka, “most probably in Kandy”. “India came forward with an aid of almost $4 billion during our economic crisis. We are thankful to India as without that we could not have survived and this is why we are also looking at closer relations, and more trade,” he said. “The Indo-Lanka relationship is improving, and today we are looking at close economic ties and improving connectivity between the two countries.” “Indian companies like Adani are investing in Sri Lanka. We are discussing power connectivity and we have come to an agreement that it should be an undersea cable and will start working out the details. As far as land connectivity is concerned, we need a feasibility study and have appointed officials on both sides for coordination,” he added. In financial connectivity, talks are on for the implementation of UPI as well as the usage of Indian rupee in Sri Lanka, as it will help tourism. The FTA is already operational and now we are discussing how to advance it to a comprehensive economic and technology partnership, shared the Lankan president. “India has helped us financially but we’d like to see Indian investments in Sri Lanka. A ministerial delegation visited India for IIT Madras setting up a campus in Sri Lanka, and we are in the process of identifying the location. But we’d like to take some existing buildings and start it next year,” he added. Also watch | Sri Lanka President thanks India for economic support; Plans for IIT Campus in Kandy × Referring to regional security, and worries over the visits of the Chinese vessels, Wickremesinghe said, “We have told India always is that we’ve kept Indian security in mind and we will not allow anything to happen that will be harmful to Indian security, and these are all hydrographical vessels. So we allowed them to come. We want to keep the big power rivalry out of the Indian Ocean. There should not be any rivalry which has an adverse impact on the Indian Ocean.” In response to a query on restructuring of debt from China, Wickremesinghe said the Chinese have also agreed to it. Also read | How China’s ‘smokescreen’ tricks the world against reforms at UN Security Council Sharing his views on UNSC reforms, the president said, “We feel that the reforms must be done. India should be in the Security Council. But we want overall discussion where we, the smaller countries also have a say.”

Exclusive: Sri Lankan president thanks India for economic support; hails plan for IIT campus in Kandy

<p>The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday said that Sri Lanka's tax reforms are necessary for the cash-strapped country to regain the confidence of creditors. The Lankan government announced a ban on strikes in several key sectors, just one day before a planned nationwide stoppage called by unions, which was aimed at protesting against hikes in taxes and utility bills.&nbsp;</p>

<p>However, Sri Lankan workers defied the ban as they went on a strike in order to protest against the government and its proposed rescue plan for the bankrupt nation. Workers forced the closure of some hospitals, banks, etc.&nbsp;</p>

<p>President Ranil Wickremesinghe has hiked corporate tax&nbsp;to 30 per cent from 24 per cent in January, after raising VAT (Value Added Tax) to 15 per cent last year. Wickremesinghe, who is also the country's finance minister, introduced tax hikes with effect from January widely believed to be on demand by the IMF.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The IMF said in a statement: "Sri Lanka is among the countries to collect the least amount of fiscal revenue in the world, with tax revenue to GDP ratio at only 7.3 per cent in 2021. External creditors are not willing to provide financing to fill this gap".&nbsp;</p>

<p>The IMF noted that it is aware of the difficulties faced by the common people in the nation at this crucial juncture. The global lender said: "Increases in the cost of living, loss of employment and livelihood, and falling real incomes have hit large parts of the population, and particularly the poor and vulnerable who have no buffers to withstand these hardships."&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>WATCH |&nbsp;Inside South Asia: Pakistan economy on the brink&nbsp;</strong></p>

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<p>IMF mentioned that the current economic crisis has a number of origins, including the government's inability to meet government spending needs through its revenue collections.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The IMF said that tax reforms were needed as only "with appropriate tax receipts will the government will be able to fund essential expenditures, and avoid further slashing of critically important outlays". It said also in the statement: "These reforms will also help regain the confidence of creditors."&nbsp;</p>

<p>Last year in September, the IMF approved Sri Lanka a $2.9 billion bailout package over four years pending the nation's ability to restructure its debt with creditors - both bilateral and sovereign bondholders.&nbsp;</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>

<p><strong>WATCH WION LIVE HERE</strong></p>

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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday said that Sri Lanka's tax reforms are necessary for the cash-strapped country to regain the confidence of creditors.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday said that Sri Lanka's tax reforms are necessary for the cash-strapped country to regain the confidence of creditors. The Lankan government announced a ban on strikes in several key sectors, just one day before a planned nationwide stoppage called by unions, which was aimed at protesting against hikes in taxes and utility bills. However, Sri Lankan workers defied the ban as they went on a strike in order to protest against the government and its proposed rescue plan for the bankrupt nation. Workers forced the closure of some hospitals, banks, etc. President Ranil Wickremesinghe has hiked corporate tax to 30 per cent from 24 per cent in January, after raising VAT (Value Added Tax) to 15 per cent last year. Wickremesinghe, who is also the country's finance minister, introduced tax hikes with effect from January widely believed to be on demand by the IMF. The IMF said in a statement: "Sri Lanka is among the countries to collect the least amount of fiscal revenue in the world, with tax revenue to GDP ratio at only 7.3 per cent in 2021. External creditors are not willing to provide financing to fill this gap". The IMF noted that it is aware of the difficulties faced by the common people in the nation at this crucial juncture. The global lender said: "Increases in the cost of living, loss of employment and livelihood, and falling real incomes have hit large parts of the population, and particularly the poor and vulnerable who have no buffers to withstand these hardships." WATCH | Inside South Asia: Pakistan economy on the brink × IMF mentioned that the current economic crisis has a number of origins, including the government's inability to meet government spending needs through its revenue collections. The IMF said that tax reforms were needed as only "with appropriate tax receipts will the government will be able to fund essential expenditures, and avoid further slashing of critically important outlays". It said also in the statement: "These reforms will also help regain the confidence of creditors." Last year in September, the IMF approved Sri Lanka a $2.9 billion bailout package over four years pending the nation's ability to restructure its debt with creditors - both bilateral and sovereign bondholders. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

IMF says Sri Lanka’s tax reforms essential to regain the confidence of creditors

The inevitable has happened, and the Sri Lankan government has declared bankruptcy. It makes one wonder if other nations might have undergone bankruptcy in the past?

Did you know this country was once bankrupt?