Continuing his engagement with key officials of the Indian Government, the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to India Milinda Moragoda met with the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Shri Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday at the Bank’s Headquarters in Mumbai. The Sri Lankan High Commissioner is on an official visit to the State of Maharashtra.
The High Commissioner was accompanied to the meeting by Sri Lanka’s Consul General in Mumbai Dr. Valsan Vethody.
The meeting between the RBI Governor and the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka was held in a very cordial manner, and a range of issues pertaining to bilateral economic cooperation was discussed. High Commissioner Moragoda thanked Governor Das for the support that India has been extending to Sri Lanka in the context of economic stabilization, particularly the currency swap arrangements and deferment of payments that materialized with the direct involvement of the Reserve Bank of India. He also thanked India for the leadership it took towards the realization of the International Monetary Fund’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Sri Lanka.
The RBI Governor and the High Commissioner discussed economic recovery in Sri Lanka and the pivotal role that India could play in it through greater integration of the economies in areas such as power, energy, ports, infrastructure, tourism, IT services, etc.
The ways and means to enhance bilateral trade, particularly through the Indian Rupee trade expansion, as a key pillar of economic revival in Sri Lanka, were discussed as well.
High Commissioner Moragoda presented a copy of his policy roadmap the ” Integrated Country Strategy for Sri Lanka Diplomatic Missions in India 2021/2023″ to Governor Das.
A former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, Shaktikanta Das has been serving as the 25th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India since December 2018. He was earlier a member of the Fifteenth Finance Commission and India’s Sherpa to the G20. During his career as an IAS officer, Das served in various capacities for the Indian Government, including as Economic Affairs Secretary, Revenue Secretary and Fertilizers Secretary. He has also served as India’s Alternate Governor in the World Bank, ADB, NDB and AIIB.
During the past couple of months, High Commissioner Moragoda met with several other key officials of the Government of India, including Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister of India Dr. Pramod Kumar Mishra, Finance Secretary T.V. Somanathan, Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba, Chairman of the NITI Aayog Parameswaran Iyer and Director General of the National Centre for Good Governance Bharat Lal.
