Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to work with the international community to help reduce poverty in Sri Lanka.

The UK has provided £3 million of targeted support for those most severely affected by Sri Lankan economic crisis, including providing multipurpose cash transfers for vulnerable families and food for school children, delivered through our UN partners and the Red Cross. The UK also provided economic support through multilateral institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. We welcome the IMF Executive Board approval, on 20 March, for a four-year $3 billion Extended Fund Facility to support Sri Lanka's economic policies and reforms. As a member of the Paris Club, we will continue to work closely with creditors and the Sri Lankan Government to help restore debt sustainability and macroeconomic stability in line with IMF programme parameters.