World News: Sri Lankan president says regrets crisis, expands cabinet ahead of IMF talks – Gulf Digital News

World News: Sri Lankan president says regrets crisis, expands cabinet ahead of IMF talks – Gulf Digital News

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s embattled president announced 17 new ministerial appointments yesterday, notably leaving out members of his own family, and expressed regret for his government’s handling of a devastating economic crisis that has led to widespread protests.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his elder brother, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, will stay on despite demands from protesters and the opposition for them to quit. Rajapaksa has governed the South Asian island nation since 2019 with other family members in top government positions.

The island nation of 22 million is experiencing prolonged power cuts and fuel and medicines shortages triggered by a tumble in its foreign exchange reserves that has stalled imports of essentials, leading to daily protests in the commercial capital Colombo.

The government is set to begin talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday for a loan programme, and analysts have flagged political instability as a risk to Sri Lanka finding a way out of its financial turmoil.

Credit rating agency Moody’s downgraded the country’s debt rating on Monday, putting it even deeper in “junk” territory, below investment grade.

In a speech to his new cabinet, President Rajapaksa said the country should have sought help from the IMF sooner – as urged by opposition