COLOMBO, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's Ministry of Finance, Economic and Policy Development will be reviewing concessional loan schemes in order to meet new growth sectors and policy targets, local media reported here Wednesday.
In an official statement, the ministry has said that it is aware of the need to make low-interest loans available for small and medium enterprises so that the economy can be driven forward. However, the statement added that existing loan schemes would have to be revised in order to meet current economic priorities.
"After a comprehensive analysis these loan programs will be reintroduced and expanded. They will be focused on the priority areas focused on by the Government and in alignment with the policies outlined by the Government. The loan schemes will be continued with greater strength and efficiency," the statement said.
In 2018, the Sri Lankan government rolled out several low-interest rate schemes in order to boost small and medium enterprises and create 100,000 new entrepreneurs by 2020. By October 2019, around 50 billion Sri Lankan rupees worth of loans had been disbursed to around 30,000 people, according to the previous government.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa who was appointed as the new minister of Finance, Economic and Policy Development earlier this week said the newly appointed interim cabinet will take a people-centric approach in order to meet an ambitious average growth rate target of 6.5 percent.
