4.5 million livelihoods threatened as MSMEs struggle, says Sajith

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa today accused the Government of merely presenting arguments without offering practical solutions to the hardships faced by the people, particularly small and medium-scale entrepreneurs. Addressing Parliament, Premadasa said over 1.1 million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), which contribute 52% to the country’s GDP and provide livelihoods to around 4.5 million people, are facing a severe crisis. He noted that more than 260,000 businesses collapsed during the 2022 economic downturn, with another 150,000 shutting down in the past two years. Despite this, he said the Government has failed to implement a proper debt restructuring mechanism for…

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