IMF to help make Samurdhi more productive endeavour

Uditha Kumarasinghe

COLOMBO: The International Monitory Fund (IMF) has pledged to provide the necessary guidelines to transform the Samurdhi programme into a more productive endeavour in a bid to accelerate the country's key poverty alleviation drive.

In order to review the progress achieved by the Samurdhi movement, a special discussion was held at the Samurdhi Ministry with the participation of Samurdhi and Poverty Alleviation Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi, IMF Assistant Advisor David P Kod and the Central Bank officials.

The discussion was focused on the present position of the Samurdhi programme while the Minister touched on the various programmes implemented through the Samurdhi movement to alleviate poverty in Sri Lanka, Minister Wanniarachchi told the Daily News yesterday.

The discussions were also centered on several key programmes implemented by the Samurdhi movement such as the Jana Pubuduwa loan scheme, Samurdhi bank programme, Gam Pubuduwa and other key Samurdhi development projects, she said.

During the discussions, the IMF Assistant Advisor commended the repayment rate of Samurdhi bank loans while also bringing up the issue of the non-eligible being recipients while deserving being left out.

He also commented on the inadequacy of the present subsidy granted to the poor, the Minister said. Minister Wanniarachchi said the Ministry has already commenced a programme to review the methodology of selecting Samurdhi beneficiaries.