Sri Lanka Restricts Fuel Consumption Through Closed Schools And WFH
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Roshan Amiri
- . June 27, 2022
- . Update: June 28, 2022 2:23 pm
Sri lanka– A severe fuel shortage in the country has forced Sri Lanka to ask its public servants to work from home and schools to be shut down. The economic crisis is at its worst in the country ever in decades.
With its foreign exchange reserves at a record low, the island of 22 million is struggling to pay for essential imports of food, medicine and most critically, fuel. The military is helping in giving out tokens to the three wheelers who queue for long hours to fuel their ferries.
People have had to stand for four days at a stretch to receive fuel. It isn’t being made clear as to how long can the government stretch its fuel reserves. The country is surviving on its reserves and has no access to anymore shipments coming in.
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Public transport, power generation and medical services will get priority in fuel distribution, with some rationed to ports and airports. A team from the International Monetary Fund is visiting Sri Lanka to hold talks on a $3-billion bailout package. Although the Indian Ocean nation is hoping to reach a staff-level agreement before the visit ends on Thursday, that is unlikely to unlock any immediate funds.
Unfortunately, it is the maladministration and misgovernance under the Rajapaksa regime which has brought the country to this state of affairs. The Rajapaksa politics of appeasement and favour meant that massive tax cuts had followed his ascent to power. Without clear alternate sources of income for the government and a reduction in taxes, rising foreign debts, extensive spending on public infrastructure, decline in agricultural output, and a reduction in tourists and remittances; Sri Lanka ended in a situation where the debt it owed was around 111% of its GDP.
As it stands now, the Sri Lankan parliament is now undertaking the task of passing the 21st amendment to their constitution which aims to restrict the powers of the President.
