Fact Check
To check this claim, FactCheck referred to the latest available data, from 2019, from the Central Bank Annual Report and the Ministry of Finance (MoF) Annual Report.
Public sector external debt encompasses both debt to external parties accounted in the books of the Central Government as well as those accounted in the books of the State Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Adding these together, the share of external debt owed to China by the public sector was 14.8% in 2019 (See Exhibit 1).
The MP has rounded down to 14% instead of rounding up to 15%. In the context of his statement, we classify the MP’s statement as TRUE.
*FactCheck’s verdict is based on the most recent information that is publicly accessible. As with every fact check, if new information becomes available, FactCheck will revisit the assessment.
Additional Note: Sri Lanka has tended to move the reporting of its foreign loans back and forth from the books of the Central government to the books of the SOEs. Since all these loans are the ultimate liability of the government, total debt public debt is calculated as the sum of the debt in Central govt and SOE books. For an analysis of this movement of debt and the resulting complications see the Verité Research Publication “Navigating Sri Lanka’s Debt Better reporting can help – a case study on China debt” (https://www.veriteresearch.org/publication/briefing-note-navigating-srilankas-debt/).
Sources
Ministry of Finance, Annual Report 2019, available at: http://oldportal.treasury.gov.lk/web/guest/publications/annual-report [last accessed: 2 June 2021]
Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Annual Reports (2019 and 2020), available at: https://www.cbsl.gov.lk/en/publications/economic-and-financial-reports/annual-reports [last accessed: 2 June 2021]