Sep 3 (FT) Sri Lanka’s debt to China is making headlines in international and local media again. Media reports partly blame China and its lending practices for SL’s debt crisis. The publication titled: The Lure of Chinese Loans: Sri Lanka’s experiment with a special framework to finance its infrastructure sheds light on the perils of creating frameworks to facilitate deviations from competitive bidding to tap into concessional export credit from emerging economies such as China. more..

Sep 3 (Island) Anura Kumara Dissanayake, leader of the NPP yesterday in Parliament questioned the recent appointments to the President’s Media Division (PMD). Dissanayake reading out a list of names revealed at least 15 directors, 10 deputy directors, eight photographers, four video editors and six media assistants have been appointed in addition to a Presidential Advisor for media and a Director General for the PMD. Dissanayake said there was contradiction between more..

Sep 3 (CT) About 2,000 doctors have left Sri Lanka so far this year due to the current economic crisis. Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) Registrar Dr. Ananda Hapugoda said doctors usually get the Good Standing Certificate for their higher education or work abroad. A RTI request revealed that 2,206 medical doctors got the Good Standing Certificate from SLMC up to Aug 2022. 433 medical doctors obtained the Good Standing Certificate in June this year. more..

Sep 3 (Island) The govt was conspiring to remove Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe as the Governor of the CB and replace him with a henchman of the govt, Opposition Leader, Sajith Premadasa told Parliament. Premadasa said that, Dr. Weerasinghe had been asked to make a presentation in parliament on the state of the economy. “There must be some kind of agreement among ourselves about the direction more..

Sep 3 (DM) Claiming that the state institutions are running at huge loss due to decisions taken by politicians, NPP MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that those who were responsible for plunging the state institutions into loss making entities, should be dealt with before privatising them. He told Parliament that state institutions such as SriLankan Airlines and Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) were found to have been loss making bodies due to actions of the politicians. more..

Sep 5 (Island) SJB MPs walked out of a meeting with CBSL Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe on 31 Aug, following a heated argument with govt MPs there. Dr. Weerasinghe arrived in Parliament to brief the MPs on the economic affairs of the country. During the Q&A session, attorney-at-law, Wasantha Yapa Bandara, who joined the Opposition from the SLPP, asked Dr. Weerasinghe why the CBSL had ignored the continuous downgrades by rating agencies. He also asked Dr. Weerasinghe more..

Sep 3 (AD) Beleaguered former Prez Gotabhaya Rajapaksa returned to the island a short while ago (2). Rajapaksa fled the country after months-long mass public demonstrations demanding his immediate resignation gained momentum in July after protesters stormed the Prez’s House in Colombo and several other state buildings in the capital. He reached the Maldives late on July 12, more..

Sep 4 (CT) There are three dangerous global trends. The first is not new, it is the growth of right-wing extremism in the US; the second is more recent and commenced in 2022 with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The third is the prospect of Sino-US military hostilities. All three will affect this country. Right-wing extremism turned perilous in the US with the election of Donald Trump whose Administration has lived alongside hate groups and an extreme legislative agenda (anti-environmental, anti-feminist, more..

Sep 4 (SO) There is no escaping the fact that SL is facing a dire and unprecedented economic crisis. There are no easy answers or quick fixes for emerging from this economic malaise unscathed. A collective determination and a spirit of sacrifice will be needed in this long and painful journey towards economic redemption. It is also clear that we cannot climb out of this quagmire without external help, since our own foreign reserves have hit the nadir. Covid-19 certainly played a part in our slide more..

Sep 4 (TM) Improving transparency, Sri Lanka’s human rights track record, and securing an IMF agreement are focus areas for the Govt to improve SL’s international recognition, says Foreign Affairs Minister Ali Sabry, PC. According to Sabry, who will be leaving for the UNHRC sessions in Geneva next week with Justice Minister Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, SL has made progress on addressing concerns related to the PTA, more..

Sep 4 (GV) SL’s economic crisis continues with no indication that it is going to be resolved anytime soon. The rupee has rapidly depreciated and the people’s protests are growing throughout the country and are not just limited to Colombo. As the economic crisis and political crisis worsen, the resulting social crisis has placed the country in a precarious position. A heavily import reliant South Asian nation, the country no longer has enough dollar reserves to purchase essential goods such as fuel and more..

Sep 4 (Island) There were reports on Friday morning as this is being written that former Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa may be back in SL over the weekend. No reasonable person will want to deny him his birthright of living here whatever the circumstances under which he fled the country as has been stated ad infinitum since his departure. When he was forced to leave the country, caving into the massive GotaGo demand, he did not find it easy to find a safe haven of refuge. more..

Sep 4 (TM) “We have to adopt multiple approaches to get more efficient State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs),” said LIRNEasia Chairman Prof. Rohan Samarajiva, outlining ways in which SOE reforms could be carried out to enable Sri Lanka’s recovery. While welcoming the move to establish an SOE Restructuring Unit as proposed in the interim Budget, Prof. Samarajiva however noted that more needed to be done. more..

Sep 4 (Island) Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and fears of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, continue to define geopolitics today. While most countries have taken sides, others are at a crossroads, unsure of what to do next. Intermediate powers, like India, have refused to take part in the great power game being played out in Asia and West Asia, except where it concerns its interests. Smaller players, including not just Sri Lanka, but also countries like Malaysia, Vietnam, and Indonesia, more..

Sep 4 (ST) The announcement this week that the Govt reached a staff-level agreement to support an Extended Fund Facility of USD 2.9 billion with the IMF to restore macro-economic stability and lay the groundwork for growth in the country including addressing corruption vulnerabilities, must surely be welcomed by a vast majority of the people. Kudos to the Govt negotiators for successfully wrapping up a deal on the macroeconomic framework without further delay. more..

Sep 4 (ST) My Dear GL and the Gang of 13, I thought of writing to you after hearing that you had crossed over to the Opposition a few days ago, distancing yourselves from the pohottuwa party from which you contested the last election, and from which you were elected to Parliament. Honestly, I am not sure what to make of such antics anymore. You must excuse us ordinary citizens for being confused. Who wouldn’t be, when the big boss was being chosen by Parliament after Gota more..

Sep 4 (ST) Coming out as a totally rebounded side from who they were a fortnight ago, Trinity College stunned their traditional rivals Royal College to record a close 26-21 win at the second leg of the 76th Bradby Shield encounter at Pallekele yesterday. Trinity had Royal in a completely different position from the kickoff itself, despite conceding a penalty when the game had not even completed its first minute. But from there, Trinity’s approach was far from imaginable, as Trinity scrumhalf more..

Sep 4 (ST) One of the cafe’ items published last week in this space has drawn some attention in certain circles. Headlined Top State officials indirectly steal valuable gadgets shed insight into how some of the top officials who are in active service and retired but extend their services failed to return items that were given for their official use. The list of some thirty officers including former senior administrative officials more..

Sep 4 (SO) Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of the Sports Ministry has declared that the former secretary of the Football Federation of SL (FFSL) Jaswar Umar is not suitable to hold office in any national sports association and recommended disciplinary action be taken against him for misrepresenting facts during an anti-corruption investigation. SIU Director General SSP WJH Fonseka submitted this report to the Sports Ministry secretary in September last year citing more..

Sep 4 (Island) When SL under-19 landed in UK for a month long tour, they were the underdogs as the hosts had named quite a few players who had represented their counties in First Class cricket, one-day competition on the Hundred. Despite a strong opposition, the tourists won the Test series. The first Test in Chelmsford turned out to be a nail biting contest where after being set 273 runs in 59 overs, SL slumped to 48 for four before Trinity’s Ranuda Somaratne played a blinder to help his team more..

Sep 4 (FT) The vision, the resolve and the style of the political leadership determines the wellbeing of the people and defines the character of the state. It is not often that a public intellectual who occupied a ring side seat at the circus gets to unravel the vision, evaluate the resolve, and contemplate the style of the Ring Master of the circus while also dissecting the others in the circus – the clowns, trapeze artists and acrobats. The second volume of Sarath Amunugama’s autobiography more..

Sep 4 (SO) Israeli GT3 racing driver Bar Baruch is on track to achieve his lifelong dream of racing in Formula One since being mentored on mind blowing techniques by compatriot Guy Rosenberg who is guiding professionals in sport and business to face extreme situations with consummate ease. Baruch did not believe in the mythical science of meditation when Rosenberg reached out to him for the first time. “When Rosenberg’s secretary called my father, I said I don’t believe in this bull shit more..

Sep 4 (CI) Last Saturday, Sri Lanka were all out for 105 against Afghanistan. Just seven days later, though, the very same batters put in a strong all-round performance - this time batting second, out of choice - to thwart Afghanistan's challenge and complete a four-wicket win in the first match of the Super 4 round of the 2022 Asia Cup. Even though the highest individual score for SL was 36, many of their batters chipped in, more..

Sep 4 (ANI) The SJB vowed in the Parliament that it would not let the govt sell their national assets to redeem its loan obligations to China. SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella said, "We need US$ 12 billion per year to settle loans until 2025. How is the govt going to cover the balance? Are they planning to give away national assets to redeem the loans to other countries? China too has recently stated that they were ready to take over those assets in place of defaulting loans. more..

Sep 4 (Island) In what could be called a spontaneous outpouring of gratitude, huge number of Sri Lankans from all walks of life came together and filled the Grand Marquee to thank India for all of the support extended to SL towards overcoming the economic obstacles the country has been facing. In attendance was The High Commissioner for India in SL Gopal Baglay and the Minister of External Affairs Ali Sabry. The event was organized by Sri Lankans with the thought of extending appreciation more..

Sep 4 (ST) SL’s coal tender deal is getting murkier every day as new revelations show that the state-owned Lanka Coal Company Pvt Ltd (LCC) has given a 50% premium on the individual index market price to the awardee Black Sands LLC. But LCC entirely disputes this saying that they decided on a composite Index and had arrived at the best price. The Black Sands bid at US $ 295.22 per metric tonne is $115 per MT more than more..

Sep 4 (ST) Details of how loss-making, state-run CPC has overpaid millions of rupees as commissions to its dealers without considering the stipulated official procedure have been revealed in a recent audit inspection report of the AG’s Dept. With the aim of streamlining the payment of commission to dealers the Board of Directors has taken a decision to change the existing practice of paying 2.5% of the price per litre of fuel to 3% fixing upper and lower limits (upper and lower caps). more..

Sep 4 (FE) Amish Tripathi talks about his forthcoming book, War of Lanka, turning film producer and why he has never faced any backlash on any of his books. Can readers expect some new revelations or a new narrative of the same story in your new book, War of Lanka (fourth in the Ram Chandra series)? A: The version of Ramayan most Indians identify with is based on Ramanand Sagar’s television series. There are many other ancient versions of the Ramayan, and more..

Sep 4 (EN) Members of the Paris Club of mainly Western creditor said they are ready to talk with SL on re-structuring debt after the country concluded a staff level agreement with the IMF. “We note the IMF’s assessment for the need for a debt treatment in the context of the IMF program,” the organization’s secretariat said in a statement. “The Paris Club is ready to start the debt treatment process and reiterates its willingness to coordinate with non-Paris Club official bilateral creditors more..

Sep 4 (ST) SL tea exporters are working out modalities to independently import fertiliser from tea importing countries. Exporters are looking at ways and means of importing fertiliser from some of the countries that import tea from SL, SL Tea Board (SLTB) Chairman Niraj De Mel said. He explained that if this works out it could be advantageous to tea smallhowlders in particular. Exporters are said to be using their contacts in the tea importing countries to purchase fertiliser which is being more..

Sep 4 (TM) Section I of the Elevated Highway Project (EHP), from New Kelani Bridge to Rajagiriya, is unlikely to commence soon as the Chinese contractor has not shown interest in moving forward with the project without a confirmation on Section II. Section II of the EHP, which has been planned from Rajagiriya to Athurugiriya, is currently facing legal obstructions due to legal action filed by an environmental rights organisation. more..

Sep 4 (SO) The decision to restructure and revive State Owned Enterprises which has been a major liability to the state, widening the tax net and slashing the public sector retirement age at the interim budget presented last week were commended by industry experts and business personalities. Advocacy Chair and Board Director, CFA Society SL, Ravi Abeysuriya said the interim budget has taken some key policy decisions in the right direction, to remove the huge burden more..

Sep 4 (ST) Govt is to mortgage its paddy stocks to state-run banks to obtain the required cash to make purchases from farmers in the current season. The move came after the state-run banks declared they were not in a position to extend loans to the state-run Paddy Marketing Board (PMB) to buy paddy as the debt on previous loans amounting to nearly Rs two billion was still outstanding. PMB Chairman the Neil Alwis said approval was granted on Friday to buy 30,000MT of paddy and to obtain more..

Sep 4 (TM) The delegation of the European Union to SL says it welcomes the staff-level agreement between the IMF and SL. Taking to its official Twitter handle, the EU delegation said it looks forward to continuing cooperation on public finance management and green economy, including export industries. Earlier this week, IMF staff and the SL authorities reached a staff-level agreement to support SL’s economic policies with a 48-month arrangement under EFF of about USD 2.9 b. more..

Sep 4 (AD) All-Ceylon Bakery Owners’ Association says the price of a loaf of bread is likely to increase to Rs. 300 due to the soaring prices of wheat flour in the market. According to reports, there is a shortage of wheat flour in the country at present. Vendors said the wholesale price of wheat flour per kilogram stands between Rs. 350 - Rs. 400. Meanwhile, whereas the retail price stands at Rs. 360 - Rs. 380. Bakery owners have been severely afflicted by the prevailing shortage of wheat flour in country more..