The Government and the World Bank on Tuesday kicked off talks on future assistance programs including Budget support and Development Policy Operation (DPO).

Senior officials of the World Bank and the Government attended the meeting held at the Presidential Secretariat under the patronage of State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe.   

They discussed Development Policy Operations, which provide direct budget support to governments for policy and institutional reforms, is aimed at achieving a set of specific development results. These operations were designed under three pillars such as transforming economic governance, enhancing growth and competitiveness and protecting the poor and vulnerable to provide rapid financial assistance to allow Sri Lanka to deal with actual or anticipated development financing requirements.

Lengthy discussions were held with WB team on the areas of improved debt management and transparency, improved fiscal oversight, Improve tax administration policy, increase public procurement transparency and value for money, sever the sovereign-financial sector nexus, improve stewardship of the financial sector and reduce systemic risk, reform and enhance oversights of SOEs, reduce the anti-export bias of national tariff policy and elite capture, eliminate barriers to foreign investment, make energy and transport sector less dependent on imported fuels and more climate friendly, and strengthen social protection institutions, delivery systems, and targeting. 

Senior Advisor to the President on National Security and Chief of Staff of the President Sagala Ratnayake, State Minister of Social Empowerment Women’s and Children Affairs Anupa Pasqual, President’s Secretary Saman Ekanayake, World Bank Country Manager Chiyo Kanda and the members of the World Bank team and the officials of the line institutions of the relevant ministries were present at this discussion. 

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