The Advisory Committee appointed to assist the National Economic Council has presented five proposals to be implemented expeditiously, the President’s Media Division (PMD) noted in a media release.

The members of the Advisory Committee met with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and members of the National Economic Council for the first time yesterday (21), and presented their set of proposals.

The 16-member advisory committee was appointed by the President on 15 March to assist the National Economic Council in finding solutions to the economic problems that have arisen in the country.

The proposals submitted by the committee are as follows:

1. The immediate appointment of a Technical Committee consisting of officials representing the Central Bank and the Treasury to propose international financial assistance;

2. The immediate appointment of a financial advisor and steps to be taken to appoint a legal advisor;

3. The Technical Committee should expeditiously come up with a restructuring programme to propose international financial assistance;

4. Identifying a team of specialists to assist the Minister of Finance; and

5. Focus on building trust by avoiding supply interruptions.

The Advisory Committee further recommended that short and long-term measures be taken to strengthen refinancing to stabilise the economy and steer it in the right direction. It said that Sri Lanka has to face the repercussions of the impact on the economies of many countries in the world, and that the exchange crisis is in the forefront of this.

The Advisory Committee expressed confidence that the economic downturn that has arisen can be avoided in the short term by properly managing the challenges facing the country, the PMD reported.

Courtesy:The Morning