Sri Lanka crisis will last at least two more years, finance minister says

Months of blackouts and acute shortages of food, fuel and pharmaceuticals have brought widespread suffering across the South Asian island nation

Public anger sparked sustained protests demanding the government resign over its mismanagement of the economic crisis – its worst since independence in 1948

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Protesters shout slogans during a protest in front of the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo, Sri Lanka in April. Sri Lanka faces its worst ever economic crisis in decades due to the lack of foreign reserves, resulting in severe shortages in food, fuel, medicine, and imported goods. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 10:48pm, 4 May 2022Updated: 12:57am, 5 May 2022

Sri Lanka will have to endure its unprecedented economic hardships for at least two more years, the country’s finance minister said on Wednesday while warning of an imminent cash crunch.

Months of blackouts and acute shortages of food, fuel and pharmaceuticals have brought widespread suffering across the South Asian island nation.

Public anger has sparked sustained protests demanding the government resign over its mismanagement of the economic crisis, Sri Lanka’s worst since independence in 1948.

“People should know the truth. I don’t know if people realise the gravity of the situation,” Finance Minister Ali Sabry told parliament.

Ali Sabry, newly appointed minister of finance discusses the country’s economic crisis in Colombo, Sri Lanka in April. Photo: Reuters

“We won’t be able to resolve this crisis in two years, but the actions we take today will determine how much longer this problem will drag.”

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