Sri Lanka, IMF to start next round of technical discussions amid crisis

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced it will begin the next round of technical discussions with Sri Lanka from May 9-23

IMF's mission chief for Sri Lanka, Masahiro Nozaki said that the Fund is committed to assisting Sri Lanka, in line with its policies, reports Xinhua news agency.

"Because Sri Lanka's debt is assessed as unsustainable, approval of IMF financing, including through a Rapid Financing Instrument, would require adequate assurances that debt sustainability will be restored," he said.

The two sides held the first round of discussions at the IMF headquarters last month.

Sri Lanka hopes for a Rapid Finance Instrument (RFI) facility as well as a larger Extended Fund Facility (EFF) from the IMF to overcome its foreign currency shortage issues that had led to an economic crisis.