Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Wednesday, 22 March 2023 01:31 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Monday that Sri Lanka will be the first country in Asia to undergo a governance diagnostic exercise by the multilateral lender as part of the $ 2.9 billion Extended Fund Facility support program.
The objective of the diagnostic study is to examine the severity of corruption in Sri Lanka and identify key governance weaknesses and corruption vulnerabilities, assess adequacy of anti-corruption framework and policies needed to address corruption vulnerabilities, revealed IMF’s Mission Chief for Sri Lanka Masahiro Nozaki at an online briefing from Washington DC for journalists from
He said that the diagnostic will be on IMF›s core issues − Fiscal governance, financial sector oversight, CBSL governance, market regulations, rule of law and Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism measures.
By the end September this year, the IMF will publish the report of the governance diagnostic technical assistance mission to assess Sri Lanka›s anti-corruption framework.
Nozaki said this is an important milestone in the IMF’s program and the exercise has already started in cooperation with the Government and engagements include the civil society.
IMF’s Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka Peter Breuer at the briefing emphasised the importance of anti-corruption and governance reforms as a central pillar of the EFF-supported program
“They are indispensable to ensure the hard-won gains from the reforms benefit the Sri Lankan people,” he added.
He said that the Sri Lankan authorities have committed to fundamentally improve public financial management and strengthen the anti-corruption legal framework in line with the United Nations Convention against Corruption.
In addition, the IMF is conducting an in-depth governance diagnostic exercise, which will assess corruption and governance vulnerabilities in Sri Lanka and provide prioritised and sequenced recommendations.
“We look forward to further engagement and collaboration with stakeholders and civil society organisations on this critical reform area,” Breuer added.
As per the agreement entered into with the IMF, Sri Lanka by end June 2023 must enact new anti-corruption legislation to harmonise it with the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, pending comprehensive asset recovery provisions, in consultation with IMF staff.
The legislation will include strengthening the asset declaration system in accordance with the G-20 High-Level Principles on asset disclosure by public officials, including coverage of officials and reporting standards. The legislation will create an anti-corruption commission vested with the authority and strengthen independence for investigations. The draft legislation, which does not cover comprehensive asset recovery provisions, is currently under review by a review Committee before final approval by the Cabinet.
A transparent and merit-based process for selecting members of the independent commission will also be integrated explicitly into this legislation. Comprehensive asset recovery provisions in compliance with the UNCAC standard are expected to be developed in consultation with IMF staff and incorporated into a separate draft legislation pertaining to Proceeds of Crime by March 2024.
