COLOMBO - Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Saturday said the growth rate of the economy could be -3.5 or -4.0% in 2023 after registering -11% growth last year.

"From 2024, we will take this economy to positive growth. We are creating a strong country that does not bow down to anyone and is debt-free," he said while attending a religious event.

(Reporting by Uditha Jayasinghe; writing by Rupam Jain; editing by Jason Neely)