President welcomes Speaker Nasheed's appointment to coordinate economic relief efforts of Sri Lanka

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has welcomed the appointment of Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed to coordinate the economic relief efforts of Sri Lanka.

Speaker Nasheed was appointed to the role by the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe. The appointment was made after Speaker Nasheed offered his services to assist Sri Lanka in securing relief from foreign nations amid its current economic crisis.

In a tweet, President Solih welcomed Speaker Nasheed’s appointment by the Sri Lankan government to coordinate international relief efforts for the country. The president stated the Maldives will always stand with Sri Lanka, and will support the country in every possible way to overcome these difficult times.

Sri Lanka is currently facing its worst economic crisis in its history. Economic mismanagement, the COVID-19 pandemic and rising energy costs following Russia's invasion of Ukraine have drained state coffers, meaning Sri Lanka is running low on fuel and essential medicines and facing daily power blackouts.

The crisis triggered nationwide protests against the Sri Lankan government, forcing the resignation of former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on May 9. Ranil Wickremesinghe, a political veteran who has been prime minister of Sri Lanka five times before, was sworn-in as the new Prime Minister on May 12.