Sri Lanka moving in right direction, top UN official says

United Nations Assistant Secretary-General (ASG), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Assistant Administrator and Director of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, Kanni Wignaraja has applauded the plans that are underway for Sri Lanka’s social and political development.

She conveyed this during a meeting with Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena on Tuesday (Jan 03).

Stating that Sri Lanka is moving in the right direction once again, Wignaraja reassured the UNDP’s continuous support for the island nation.

The focus of the discussion also fell on implementing necessary programs in Sri Lanka to achieve sustainable development goals, a green economy, social harmony and social protection.

PM Gunawardena has briefed Wignaraja about the measures taken to restore the country’s economy, the programs that are in place for long-term infrastructure development and the progress of the reconciliation process.

Meanwhile, State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe too, met with Wignaraja yesterday, during which an extensive discussion was held on Sri Lanka’s debt crisis.

Accordingly, the meeting focused on obtaining approval from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the bailout the island currently awaits, debt treatment, and all other government reforms introduced in this regard.

The discussion also focused on the potential areas for future support on economic development and further financing from the UNDP, Semasinghe stated in  a Twitter message, adding that Wignaraja had ‘expressed the UNDP’s willingness to provide technical support in capacity building in government authorities’.