The report further said growth in the region is expected to rise to 5.5 percent in 2020, assuming a modest rebound in domestic demand and economic activity benefiting from policy accommodation in India and Sri Lanka, as well as improved business confidence and support from infrastructure investments in Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

The report also said global economic growth is forecast to edge up to 2.5 percent in 2020 as investment and trade gradually recover from last year’s significant weakness but downward risks persist.Sri Lanka’s new government headed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said recently that one of its targets include achieving a 6.5-percent economic growth per annum from 2020 and a GDP growth of 6,500 U.S. dollars per capita.