… explains how Parliament enacted harmful laws By Shamindra Ferdinando Veteran lawyer Kalyananda Thiranagama said that the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peremuna (SLPP) should be held responsible for backing President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s economic strategy meant to privatise the remaining state enterprises. Addressing a public gathering in Colombo, the liberal civil society activist emphasised that ...

By Shamindra Ferdinando Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means Patali Champika Ranawaka on Tuesday (12) alleged that the Finance Ministry had allowed the operation of a distillery in spite of that company failing to pay taxes. The former minister said that the country lost millions for want of political will to recover what that company owed […]

By Rathindra Kuruwita  IMF’s second review under the 48-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement for Sri Lanka is expected to be completed by the end of the first half of 2024, IMF Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka, Peter Breuer, told journalists Wednesday morning. Addressing the IMF’s Virtual Press Briefing on the First Review of […]

President Ranil Wickremesinghe told Parliament yesterday that Sri Lanka was set to come out of bankruptcy by securing of the second tranche of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’s) Extended Fund Facility. “We will now focus on securing the foreign aid that was suspended after we declared bankruptcy,” the President said, making a special statement to Parliament […]

In a special statement to Parliament today (13), President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasized the critical role of the government’s program, backed by assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and debt restructuring, in rebuilding the collapsed Sri Lankan economy. The President warned

Two policy-based loans (PBLs) have been arranged following discussions between the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Sri Lankan government, the Ministry of Finance said. Accordingly, the PBLs are slated to be used for the implementation of the Financial Sector Stability and Reform Programme, in a bid to create a stable financial system that provides […]

By Rathindra Kuruwita Dissident Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) MP, Dayasiri Jayasekera, has expressed concern over a potential 50% drop in the revenue of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) due to the entry of foreign companies into the petroleum market. Jayasekera highlighted the adverse impact of the policies of successive governments on the CPC. “The […]

by Harim Peiris As we approach the end of 2023 and with about a year to go for the next presidential election due before end 2024, President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s frequent refrain and indeed the rationale for his administration is the revival of the national economy after it was spectacularly

Minister of Justice, Prison Affairs and Constitutional Reform, Wijayadasa Rajapakse, unveiled plans to introduce a new legislative framework aimed at regulating microfinance institutions operating within the country. Expressing deep concern regarding the unregulated status of certain microfinance entities, Minister Rajapakse emphasized the necessity for decisive measures. He underscored the intent...

by Ifham Nizam Political instability is one of the biggest stumbling blocks when it comes to managing climate vulnerability, a senior climate scientist has warned. Speaking at a recent symposium titled ‘Poverty Alleviation in an Era of Economic Crisis’, former Director of the Natural Resources Management Centre (NRMC) of the Ministry of Agriculture Dr. Ranjith […]

‘Politicians and public must behave better’ by Rathindra Kuruwita  Sri Lanka has done extremely well on the economic front during the last 18 months, says former Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy. Dr. Coomaraswamy revealed his assessment of the country’s economic recovery process while addressing a Centre of Poverty […]

ECONOMYNEXT –Sri Lanka’s non-performing loans after the latest currency crisis is showing signs of having peaked but some sectors are hit worse than others with problem loans dating back from Coronavirus moratoriums, a banking official said. Hotels, transport and arts and entertainment sectors had bad loans of 30 to 20 percent, while the overall level […]

Headline inflation, as measured by the year-on-year (Y-o-Y) change in the Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI, 2021=100)1 increased to 3.4% in November 2023 from 1.5% in October 2023. This increase in the headline inflation is mostly in line with the projections envisaged by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) in November 2023. The Food […]

The French Development Agency’s (Agence Française de Développement also known as AFD) Regional Directorate is strengthening its base in Sri Lanka in line with the commemoration of 75 years of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and France. It also marks the enduring partnership between AFD Group and its Sri Lankan partners, which began in 2005 […]

SLPP leader Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday (28) hit back at critics, claiming that a robust economy had been built under his presidency. He said the UNP-SLFP government which ruled the country during the 2015-2019 period should be held responsible for the current economic crisis. The following