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The cash-strapped government of Sri Lanka would require at least $5 billion in the next six months to maintain basic living standards, including $3.3 billion for gasoline imports, according to the country’s Prime Minister.
“It is not enough to maintain economic stability; we must reorganise the entire economy,” said Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is preparing an interim budget to restore Sri Lanka’s shattered public finances.
The 22-million-strong island nation is in the midst of its worst economic crisis in seven decades, with a lack of foreign exchange preventing imports of basic goods like fuel, medication, and fertilisers.
A government official said on Tuesday that Sri Lanka’s cabinet had accepted a $55 million credit line from India’s Exim Bank to purchase fertilisers.
