COLOMBO, Feb 4 — Sri Lanka marked its independence day today with an appeal to its diaspora to send money home to overcome the island’s worsening economic crisis and a pledge to protect foreign investments.
Worker remittances, Sri Lanka’s number one foreign currency source, fell nearly 60 per cent in December. For 2021 as a whole, the figure dropped a record 22.7 per cent, to US$5.49 billion. Rajapaksa, who came to power two years ago pledging to “retake” all state enterprises either leased or partly sold to foreign companies by the previous administration, called for greater foreign involvement in Sri Lanka’s economy.
His own coalition cabinet is divided on a move to sell a stake in a state electricity utility to a US company.
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