The Minister said this when she called on Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena at the Temple Trees in Colombo today (May 4).

The Prime Minister briefed the visiting Foreign Minister about the progress in ongoing debt restructuring process with International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Paris Club, which is co-chaired by the Japanese government, and supported by India, France and other donor countries. He also emphasized the implementation of Aswessuma programme to assist and uplift low income and vulnerable segments.

Minister Kamikawa Yoko expressed appreciation over the progress and said Japan expects Sri Lanka to expedite restructuring arrangements with China and private lenders too.

Prime Minister thanks Japan for the assistance provided for Buddhist religious centres including the proposed mahavihara University in Anuradhapura and said it was significant that the Japanese Minister is visiting Sri Lanka in the month of Wesak, the most sacred period of the Buddhist calendar.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Kamikawa Yoko was accompanied by senior officials of Japanese Foreign Ministry and Japanese Ambassador in Sri Lanka Mizukoshi Hideaki.

Ministers of State Taraka Balasuriya, Suren Raghavan, Piyal Nishantha, MP Yadamini Gunawardena, Additional Secretary to the Prime Minister, Harsha Wijewardene and Vice Chancellor of University of Colombo Prof H D Karunaratne were also present at this meeting.