Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe will take the oath of office today
Sri Lanka's new President Ranil Wickremesinghe is established to swear in his Cabinet on Friday, which will include members of the previous government, including the next Prime Minister, Dinesh Gunewardena. The previous Cabinet will continue to function until a national government is agreed upon by Parliament, at which point a Cabinet reshuffle will take place. Mr. Wickremesinghe, 73, who was sworn in as the country's eighth president on Thursday after winning a parliamentary vote, has called for bipartisanship to address the country's unprecedented economic crisis. Mr. Gunewardena, the Leader of the House in the Sri Lankan Parliament, will be the new Prime Minister. He was assigned as Home Minister by then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in April. Mr Gunawardena, a veteran of Sri Lankan politics, has also served as foreign minister and education minister. Officials said Mr Wickremesinghe would try and build an all-party government to address the country's current economic crisis, which is the worst since its independence in 1948. Mr Wickremesinghe, a 6 former prime minister, was elected by lawmakers on Wednesday in a rare move that could provide continuity for crucial talks with the IMF about a bailout deal for the cash-strapped country. He will be given the mandate to complete Gotabaya Rajapaksa's term, which comes to an end in November 2024. Read the full article
