The Sri Lankan government, led by the self-proclaimed Marxist National People’s Power (NPP), has revealed it is considering privatisation as an option for restructuring the heavily indebted national carrier, SriLankan Airlines.
Speaking at the Invest Sri Lanka Forum this week, Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Dr Harshana Suriyapperuma confirmed that privatisation and Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) are among a wide range of options currently under consideration.
“We are assessing what the best course of action will be. We are looking at restructuring. Therefore, the options range widely, including setting up a fund for assets, privatisation, changing management, or even amalgamation,” he said. “We believe in exploring all alternatives. We will take the best possible action… and we will await the committee’s recommendations.”
He added that the government has not yet taken a fixed position on the matter. “We do not have any pre-determined stance, so we will approach this carefully.”
When asked about a timeframe for a decision, Dr Suriyapperuma acknowledged the difficulty of providing a specific schedule, though he confirmed that a deadline has been given to the committee overseeing the restructuring. He declined, however, to disclose the timeline publicly.
The announcement marks a reversal in the NPP government’s position. In October 2024, shortly after taking office with a sweeping parliamentary majority, the new administration had abandoned previous plans to privatise SriLankan Airlines.
However, that decision has reportedly come under renewed pressure from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has been providing crucial financial assistance to Sri Lanka’s crisis-hit economy.
As part of ongoing negotiations with the IMF, the NPP-led government has increasingly pivoted toward complying with their strict reforms, despite its ideological roots in socialism and its vocal opposition to neoliberal economic policy in the past.
SriLankan Airlines has long been a financial burden on the state, accruing billions of rupees in losses over the past decade.