sri lanka news: Cash-strapped Sri Lanka to sell ‘golden’ visas

Money-strapped Sri Lanka introduced on Tuesday it could promote long-term visas to draw desperately wanted international forex after the island nation ran out of {dollars} to pay even for meals and gas.

Foreigners who deposit a minimal of $100,000 regionally will probably be granted permission to reside and work in Sri Lanka for 10 years beneath the “Golden Paradise Visa Program”, the federal government mentioned.

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However any earnings from the scheme is more likely to be dwarfed by the size of the present disaster, with acute shortages of meals, gas and medicines which have triggered widespread protests.

Hundreds of individuals remained camped outdoors President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s seafront workplace to demand his resignation.

Buying and selling on the Colombo Inventory Alternate was halted thrice Tuesday as costs plunged, with the blue-chip S&P index closing down 9.75 %.

That got here on high of a near-13 % drop on Monday, the primary day of buying and selling since a two-week break throughout which the federal government hiked rates of interest and defaulted on its $51 billion international debt.

Equities have shed 47 % of their worth since January, with the native forex falling by about 40 % towards the buck previously month.

Gasoline costs have nearly doubled since December and the federal government on Tuesday introduced an 81 % enhance within the worth of cooking gasoline.

Cement, cleaning soap and detergents went up on Monday by between 17 and 100%.

The newest worth will increase got here as the primary opposition launched a six-day protest march from the central metropolis of Kandy to the capital, a distance of 115 kilometres (72 miles).

Below the programme, the cash payable will have to be deposited in a neighborhood checking account in the course of the visa, the federal government mentioned in a press release.

“This scheme will assist Sri Lanka at a time when we face the worst monetary disaster since our independence,” media minister Nalaka Godahewa advised reporters in Colombo.

The federal government additionally authorised the granting of five-year visas to any foreigner spending a minimal of $75,000 to purchase an condominium on the island.

With the disaster worsening, the federal government additionally mentioned it was prepared to think about political reforms, together with constitutional amendments that might cut back the authority of the president.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa gave himself sweeping powers to nominate and sack ministers, judges and public servants after his 2019 election.

His authorities additionally rolled again democratic reforms that had given statutory independence to the police, civil service, election fee and the judiciary.

Sri Lanka’s financial collapse started to be felt after the coronavirus pandemic torpedoed important income from tourism and remittances.

Utilities unable to pay for gas imports have imposed prolonged each day blackouts to ration energy, whereas lengthy traces snake round service stations as folks queue for petrol and kerosene.

Hospitals are wanting important medicines, the federal government has appealed to residents overseas for donations and report inflation has added to on a regular basis hardships.

Sri Lankan officers arrived in Washington final week to barter a bailout with the Worldwide Financial Fund.