Colombo (LNW): Sports Minister Harin Fernando has steps towards enhancing the sports landscape by appointing members to the National Sports Council.
The council, which will be led by Dr. Maiya Gunasekara, is poised to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of sports in the country.
The newly appointed members of the National Sports Council are expected to bring diverse perspectives and skills to the table, ensuring a well-rounded approach to addressing the various challenges and opportunities within the sports sector.
As the council gears up to assume its responsibilities, the nation eagerly anticipates the positive impact it will have on sports development. From grassroots initiatives to high-performance programmes, the National Sports Council is set to chart a course towards sustained success.
Colombo (LNW): The cyclonic storm “MICHAUNG” over Southwest Bay of Bengal was located near latitude 13.2°N and longitude 81.2°E, at 0530hrs of 04, December and about 395 km northeast of Jaffna, and is expected to intensify further and move northwestward away from Sri Lanka towards Tamil Nadu coast of India. Thereafter, it may move northwards and cross South Andhra Pradesh coasts around December 5, 2023.
The above warning was issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre of the Department of Meteorology, addressing the naval and fisherman communities in the deep and shallow sea areas in the southwest Bay of Bengal.
Naval and fishing communities are urged not to venture into the sea areas off the coast extending from Mannar to Trincomalee via Kankasanturai and in to the marked areas for the next 24 hours.
Those who are out at aforementioned sea regions are advised to return to coasts or be moved to safer areas immediately.
Fishing and naval community are also requested to be attentive to future forecasts issued by the Dept in this regard, the statement added.
Meanwhile, prevailing showery condition over the South-western parts of the island is likely to continue further due to the indirect effect of the cyclone, the Centre noted in a separate advisory notice.
Heavy showers above 100 mm are likely to occur at some places in Western, Central, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Northern and North-Western provinces.
Colombo (LNW): In a stunning turn of events, Sri Lanka has witnessed an astounding surge of dengue, with an exact tally of 1,000 new cases emerging within 72 hours.
This means a staggering average of 300 cases daily, propelling the nation back into a distressing scenario where an average of 250 cases per day has become the norm, emphasised Director of the National Dengue Control Unit (NDCU), Dr. Nalin Ariyaratne.
He added the ominous forecast of a further spike in dengue cases, attributing it to the persistent rainy conditions. In a plea to the public, Dr. Ariyaratne urged the public to take immediate action by maintaining cleanliness in their surroundings and eliminating potential mosquito breeding grounds to thwart the impending dengue spread.
As of December 04, the cumulative count for 2023 has surged to a staggering 77,487 cases, painting a vivid picture of the escalating crisis. Colombo district leads the grim statistics with 16,363 cases, while the Western Province emerges as the hardest-hit region, reporting 36,266 cases, representing an alarming 47 percent of the total reported cases.
The magnitude of these numbers serves as a stark reminder of the pressing need for collective and urgent action to combat this escalating health crisis, health experts warned.
Colombo (LNW): Education Minister Susil Premajayantha, has officially declared that the GCE Ordinary and Advanced Level Examinations for the year 2024 are slated to take place in the upcoming year.
In a statement, the Minister confirmed that the previously delayed GCE Advanced Level Examination for 2023 is rescheduled to be conducted in January 2024 according to the original timetable.
However, in a strategic move, the Minister conveyed that the GCE Ordinary Level Examination for the year 2024 is set to be held in mid-May of the following year.
There is a necessity for a three-month interval between each examination to ensure the smooth execution of paper marking processes, the Minister emphasised, adding that that by the year 2025, the government will successfully establish a normalised system for conducting examinations within the specified academic years.
Colombo (LNW): The Sri Lankan Rupee (LKR) indicates a slight appreciation against the US Dollar today (04) in comparison to last week’s Friday, as per the official exchange rates issued by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL).
Accordingly, the buying price of the US Dollar has dropped to Rs. 322.89 from Rs. 322.90, but the selling price has increased to Rs. 333.32 from Rs. 333.23.
The Sri Lankan Rupee, however, indicates a different approach towards other foreign currencies, with many, including Gulf currencies, appreciating against it.
Colombo (LNW): Police deployed water cannons to disband a gathering of demonstrators at the Polduwa Junction in Battaramulla.
The protest, organised by the women’s wing of the National Peoples Power (NPP), commenced near the Parliamentary Roundabout this (04) afternoon, and is currently being held.
The NPP’s women’s wing initiated the protest to highlight various concerns, such as the escalating cost of living, the tax burden on citizens, and other pressing issues affecting the country.
Law enforcement employed water cannons when protesters endeavoured to advance towards Parliament along Parliament Road, according to reports.
Colombo (LNW): Consumer confidence fell again in October, continuing its slide from its peak in April 2023, according to the Institute for Health Policy (IHP) as per the latest update of its Consumer Confidence Indices, generated from its Sri Lanka Opinion Tracker Survey (SLOTS).
This sentiment of consumers was evident amidst the Headline inflation, as measured by the year-on-year (Y-o-Y) change in the Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) increased to 1.5% in October 2023 from 1.3% in September 2023.
The Central Bank said this slight increase in the headline inflation is mostly in line with its projections envisaged in October 2023.
This is the second straight month that inflation has accelerated, albeit marginally. Since peaking in February 2023 at 50.60%, inflation was seen on steady and rapid disinflation path, reaching the current significantly moderated levels compared to a year ago.
CBSL said the food deflation (Y-o-Y) continued for the fourth consecutive month and remained unchanged at 5.2% in October 2023 compared to the previous month. Meanwhile, the non-food inflation (Y-o-Y) increased to 4.9% in October 2023 from 4.7% in September 2023.
“Inflation is expected to stabilise around the targeted level of 5% over the medium term, supported by appropriate policy measures and well-anchored inflation expectations.
Nevertheless, should there be any upward increases to administratively determined prices, tariffs or taxes by the Government, a transitory increase in inflation beyond the target is probable in the short term,” CBSL said.
IHP said all indices remain at pessimistic levels with the biggest decline in the Index of Current Conditions, which tracks current conditions, and which fell 5 points to 13 points.
The Index of Consumer Sentiment (ICS), the broadest measure of the public’s view of their personal economic status and the national economy, fell 3 points to 22 points in October.
The Index of Consumer Expectations (ICE), which tracks future perceptions fell 2 points to 28 points.
All IHP SLOTS consumer confidence indices range from zero to a potential maximum of 100, with levels below 50 indicating net pessimism.
The CCI estimates are based on 558 interviews conducted by telephone in October 2023 and 13,216 adults surveyed between Oct. 21 2021-Oct. 31 2023, with sample sizes varying between indices depending on response rates.
All estimates are adjusted to be representative of the national population, including gender, age, ethnicity, and income level.
The SLOTS platform tracks public opinion and wellbeing daily using a large national panel recruited by face-to-face interviews and other randomly dialled respondents, with numerous peer-reviewed scientific publications that use the data.
Colombo (LNW): Corporates are poised with apprehension as the proposals outlined in Budget 2024 take effect with a sense of uncertainty clouding expectations for the upcoming fiscal year,” leading business magazine LMD reports, in its December edition.
LMD states: “Optimism among business executives that the economy will ‘improve’ over the next 12 months has diminished, falling to eight percent in November. This represents a decrease of five points from the preceding month’s 12%.”
The leading magazine adds that 19% of the survey sample expect the economy to ‘stay the same,’ which is lower than the 27% recorded in October.
“A whopping 73% believe the economic situation will ‘get worse,’ marking a substantial increase of 12 points compared to the preceding month,” it notes.
There has also been a decline in optimism of anticipated sales volumes ‘getting better’ over the next 12 months with nearly a quarter (23%) saying so, that’s six percentage points lower than in October.
“Additionally, more than one in five respondents (23%) believe that sales numbers will ‘remain the same’ as opposed to 20% previously.
Only 11% of survey respondents say that volumes ‘increased’ compared to the past 12 months, which LMD says “is a notable decrease of 13 points from October.” And 12% reveal that their sales numbers ‘stayed the same’ while more than three-quarters (77%) reported a reduction.
“Caution dominates the outlook for sales volumes to ‘get better’ in the next three months with only 14% saying so, a slight decrease from the 17% recorded in October.
LMD’s publisher, Media Services, says the latest edition of the magazine will be released shortly. Its digital edition will also be shared on WhatsApp and the publisher’s social media platforms.
The magazine’s cover story unveils the pioneering Digital Readiness Index (DRI) with a listing of the corporate houses that a survey conducted by the University of Kelaniya has compiled.
Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka’s tourism industry is entering into an encouraging resurgence track in the first eleven months of 2023, with the number of tourist arrivals showing a marked increase in comparison to the previous year, according to the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA).
In the wake of this tourism revival ,the first-ever Meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions( MICE ) tourism road map, outlining a visionary three-year plan for 2024- 2026 was unveiled by the Sri Lanka Convention Bureau (SLCB) on 15 November.
The Bureau has outlined its ambitious target for 2026, aiming to generate 20% of tourist arrivals through MICE activities, projecting an 11% increase in MICE arrivals from 2023.
One of the distinctive features of this initiative is the unprecedented collaboration between the public and private sectors, marking a significant milestone in Sri Lanka’s tourism development.
The tourism industry has demonstrated a robust resurgence, surpassing over $ 1.75 billion in earnings during the first 11 months of the year, accompanied by the arrival of over 1.27 million visitors.
“As per the provisional figures tourism earnings in the first 11 months are estimated at over $ 1.75 billion, reflecting a 55% increase from the corresponding period of last year, whilst November earnings stood around $ 160 million,” Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) Chairman Priantha Fernando disclosed.
He said November earnings were around US$ 160 million, contributing to the overall positive trajectory of the industry.
“Despite grappling with challenges stemming from the Easter Sunday attacks in 2019, the tourism sector not only weathered these storms but emerged stronger,” he added.
The surge in arrivals during November is particularly noteworthy, with Sri Lanka welcoming 151,496 tourists, a stark contrast to the crisis-ridden 59,759 seen in 2022. Nevertheless, when compared to the benchmark year of 2018, the industry still faces a 22.5% deficit.
Sri Lanka Tourism targeted 204,114 arrivals in November, but it fell short of 52,618 tourists becoming the fourth consecutive month to miss the monthly arrivals target.
India (30,339), Russia (24,912) and Germany (12,331) emerged as the top source markets in November.
Industry analysts view this upward trend as a welcome development for a sector that has navigated challenges over the past three years.
Despite setbacks, Sri Lanka Tourism is now cautiously optimistic and actively working to stimulate the sector, aiming to reclaim pre-crisis levels of activity in the coming years.
Anticipation is running high for the winter season, with the tourism sector setting ambitious goals to welcome 1.55 million visitors and achieve over $ 2.7 billion in income by year-end.
Colombo (LNW): In the wake of several countries worldwide combating climate change and its impacts that follow, the Environment Ministry cautioned that Sri Lanka is in an environmental conservation crisis.
The tackling of the crisis needs to be done sooner than later but conserving these species will have an enormous impact on securing global biodiversity, the ministry warned.
“Sri Lanka is an ideal illustration of the issues that plague the tropics. It is a biodiversity hotspot; however, a significant proportion of our endemic species are diminishing.
Sri Lanka is one of the most climate-vulnerable countries in the world. The country experiences on average US $ 313 million in annual disaster losses,” said Environment Ministry Secretary Dr. Anil Jasinghe.
Yet, Sri Lanka has been lauded as a success story for achieving high levels of human development while pursuing low-carbon growth, he added.
Sri Lanka has submitted the Climate Prosperity Plan to the UNFCCC, under which the country’s long-term low GHG emission strategy requires US $ 26 billion.
The island nation needs US $ 6.5 billion per year, if it is to successfully mitigate and adapt to climate change.
Sri Lanka is only just getting its bearings following the worst economic crisis the country has ever seen. It is evident that Sri Lanka and many other countries in the tropics with identical cases require concerted support from the global community.
The tropics are a catalytic accelerator of solutions to the triple planetary crisis—investments in the tropical belt are investments towards global progress on this front.
Meanwhile, National Experts Committee on Climate Change Adaptation Member Prof. Buddhi Marambe stressed that Sri Lanka needs a paradigm shift, moving beyond geo-political differences and boundaries.
“Investing in the tropical belt could be a unique and effective way to combat the triple planetary crisis. Higher investments in renewable energy, nature-based solutions and pollution control in the tropical belt can lead to significant, transformative changes across the world,” he said.
In place is a Tropical Belt Climate Ambition Plan and a proposed debt relief for low-income economies within the belt. The two efforts are poised to make a substantial contribution to advancing the Secretary General’s Acceleration Agenda.
As Sri Lanka prepares for COP28, the Tropical Belt Climate Ambition Plan is not just a global call to action but also a demonstration that tangible and ambitious action to credibly cut emissions and deliver climate justice is possible and practical, noted UNDP Sri Lanka Resident Representative Azusa Kubota.
