President says new economic program by next week

The National Economic Council (NEC) headed by President Maithripala Sirisena will finalise a new economic plan next week, the President’s Office announced yesterday.

According to a statement issued by the President’s Media Division, the decision to finalise this plan was reached at a meeting chaired by Sirisena at the Presidential Secretariat.

Detailed discussions on “rapid changes required in the country” and short- and long-term initiatives to be implemented had taken place at the meeting and a decision was reached to speed up economic development.

This was the eighth meeting of the NEC, which was appointed by President Sirisena last year to take policy decisions on economic development in September last year.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, ministers Sarath Amunugama, Nimal Siripala de Silva, Mangala Samaraweera, John Seneviratne, Sajith Premadasa, Rauff Hakeem, Malik Samarawickrama, Faiszer Musthapha and Navin Dissanayake, Secretary to the President Austin Fernando, NEC General Secretary Prof. Lalith Samarakoon, Secretary to the Prime Minister Saman Ekanayake, Secretary to the Cabinet Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Dr. R.H.S. Samaratunga, Secretary to the Ministry of National Policies and Economic Affairs K.D.S. Ruwanchandra, Central Bank Governor Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy and others took part in the meeting.