The Hon. (Dr.) Anil Jayantha - Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Economic Development

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, thank you for the opportunity.

¶ 02 Today’s debate concerns how far our Government has implemented the policy statement and what progress it has generated. It is good that the Opposition questions the direction of travel under our vision; it enables discussion. First we must understand what a policy statement is: beyond listing measures, it sets the national direction.

¶ 03 Our theme is clearly stated as “A Prosperous Country - A Beautiful Life.” Prosperity here is not merely monetary wealth but holistic advancement. We lagged behind global economic, social, cultural, and technological development; we must reach that level. Further, for citizens to lead that “beautiful life,” the benefits of prosperity must be fairly distributed so people can live with dignity—able to afford food, clothing, health, education, and daily needs without fear. Such outcomes do not materialize in days or months; this is a journey. We have remained faithful to the direction set by our policy statement and are taking the requisite actions accordingly.

¶ 04 The Opposition framed this as a “100 days” assessment. The “first 100 days” concept historically, dating to President Roosevelt’s New Deal, evaluates whether a government has stabilized prevailing conditions and set a sound political direction, not whether the entire economy was transformed overnight. When we took office, the country was fractured and stalled, heading to the abyss. Our first task was stabilization—creating the environment to arrest the fall and turn forward. That often takes more than 100 days, but we established stability in a short time; on that basis we proceed.

¶ 05 Let us also briefly reflect on prior governments represented by today’s Opposition. The 2010 administration promised good governance and post-war economic development, yet ended by entrenching corruption and heavy debt, the results of which we still bear. The 2015-2019 “good governance” government promised to end corruption but was marred within months by the infamous bond scam. The 2019 administration promised good governance, reconciliation, rule of law, and economic prosperity and stability, but led the economy to collapse and was rejected by the people. Their policy pledges were not fulfilled; ours are on the correct path.

¶ 06 On our progress: stabilization is paramount. Our policy statement (p. 102) set out stabilization—monetary, fiscal, and external. We anticipated and committed to it. Growth is returning: while forecasts suggested about 3.5 percent, by late 2024 and the first two quarters of 2025 we approached around 5 percent. The World Bank’s October update revised our 2025 growth outlook to about 4.6 percent. Inflation has been contained: items that cost 100 rupees rose to 170-180 under the previous crisis, with 70-80 percent inflation. We restored confidence and fiscal discipline, avoided unnecessary liquidity injections, and improved market behavior. As a result, by August-September inflation hovered around zero or a small negative; maintaining low single-digit inflation within our 2023-2026 flexible inflation targeting framework (target 5 percent) is conducive to growth. We are currently maintaining inflation below 5 percent, around 1.2 percent, while strengthening revenues.

¶ 07 We also restarted stalled projects to align with our economic trajectory while combating fraud and corruption. For the Central Expressway’s Kadawatha-Mirigama segment, we had to renegotiate with contractors who had been extending contracts for years without financing, raising suspicions of wrongdoing. Agreements had costs pegged to outdated exchange rates (e.g., Rs. 135 to the dollar). Terminating would have led to lengthy litigation, so we proceeded while minimizing losses and salvaging the first section.

¶ 08 Regarding the second section financing with China Exim Bank, claims that we took on a higher fixed rate are false. The bank no longer offers fixed rates. Through negotiations, including by the Ministry of Finance in China, we secured a favorable market-linked rate with a discount. With current Chinese market rates around 3.5 percent, the negotiated discount brings the effective rate to approximately 2.78 percent. Considering current conditions, this is advantageous, and it opens space for future development financing.

¶ 09 In sum, our short-term performance should be evaluated holistically, not by cherry-picking clauses. We are advancing policies to uplift humanity, end criminality, eradicate poverty, permanently free the country from the drug menace, suppress crime, eliminate fraud and corruption, and transform society so everyone can live happily—fulfilling the popular mandate given to us. We are on course to make “A Prosperous Country - A Beautiful Life” a reality.

¶ 10 Thank you.