In a meeting held today (January 4th), Kanni Wignaraja, the United Nations Assistant Secretary General and UNDP Director for Asia and the Pacific, expressed staunch support for Sri Lanka’s ongoing socio-political development reforms during discussions with Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena.
Wignaraja reassured the Prime Minister of the UNDP’s unwavering commitment to assisting Sri Lanka in addressing critical development challenges. The conversation centered around pivotal areas including policy reforms, digitalization, public sector modernization, climate change, the green economy, and water management.
Prime Minister Gunawardena provided insights into the government’s endeavors towards economic recovery and the establishment of long-term infrastructure development. He highlighted initiatives to broaden the tax base, underscoring the recent policy of registering all citizens above 18 years old. This initiative, he elucidated, is crafted to support digitalization plans, combat corruption and inefficiencies, and promote transparency.
Additionally, the Prime Minister outlined the government’s digitalization agenda, placing emphasis on the imminent launch of an e-procurement platform in March for local procurements and in September for international bids.
