A man selling toys counts Sri Lankan currency notes at his shop in a market in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Feb. 17, 2025. © Reuters
_Salman Rafi Sheikh is assistant professor of politics at the Mushtaq Ahmad Gurmani School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Lahore University of Management Sciences._
The newly elected government in Sri Lanka has unveiled its budget, aiming for at least 5% economic growth and raising hopes that Sri Lanka will soon emerge from default. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake framed the budget as key for "transforming the economy" and helping the country "catch up with the modern world.