A group of the world’s top economists – including the Nobel prize winner Joseph Stiglitz – have called for Sri Lanka’s debt payments to be suspended as it tackles the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah. The country’s $9bn (£6.8bn) national debt was restructured last year, after lengthy negotiations with creditors after the government defaulted on repayments in 2022. Before the cyclone hit, annual repayments were expected to total 25% of government revenues – a high level by international and historical standards. In a statement, the group of 120 global experts called for fresh debt restructuring to restore the country’s repayments to a manageable level, given the scale of environmental destruction. “This environmental emergency is poised to absorb – and potentially exceed – the extremely limited fiscal space created by the current debt restructuring package.

Source: The Guardian December 22, 2025 12:37 UTC