Where has the bulk of foreign debt gone?
Many facts have been revealed about the highly irresponsible way in which the institutions, including the Ministry of Finance, have been operating and how financial crimes have been committed even though Sri Lanka is in a state of bankruptcy.
A special feature is that received foreign loans have not been accounted for. The audit found that the total value of unaccounted foreign loans as of 31 December 2023 was 17,103.2 million rupees.
These facts are revealed in the audit report that the Auditor General added to the Ministry of Finance’s 2023 annual report.
Clause mentioned in the audit report about non-accounting of foreign debt states:-
“When comparing the CSDRMS 854-1 report of the computer system used to record foreign public debt and the financial statements of the Government, the total value of such foreign debt not accounted in this way as at 31 December 2023 was Rs. 15,823 million. Further, the total value of unaccounted foreign loans as at 31 December 2023 had been stated as Rs. 17,103.2 million in Note No. 24 (11) under the Explanatory Notes of the financial statements of the Government. Since there were loan values that were disbursed, but not accounted in the year under review and the previous years, the value of the statement of financial position as at 31 December 2023 had been understated by Rs. 15,823 million.”
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