Colombo (LNW): The restructuring of State owned SriLankan Airlines is to be completed in 6 months, Ports and Civil Aviation Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said.
He predicted that the jobs of Sri Lankan Airlines employees is at a take if immediate restructuring measures are not implemented.
In view of the fiscal burden, Sri Lankan Airlines (SLA) and its subsidiary companies are to be restructured by handing over a considerable number of shares and management of the company to selected investors, through a transparent procurement process, according to official sources.
Accordingly, the State Owned Enterprises Restructuring Unit of the Ministry of Finance has taken key initiatives to provide recommendations on restructuring SLA.
Outlining the status of the national carrier and its restructuring, Ports and Aviation Minister Nimal Siripla de Silva told the Business Times that the best outcome would be the purchase of the airline in a public private partnership.
He disclosed that several foreign investors have already expressed interest in taking over the management of the airline but didn’t name them.
It has been speculated that a major industrial conglomerate in India that recently acquired Air India from the government was among the possible investors in the national carrier.
Air India managed by Tata is likely to be among the contenders to acquire a major stake of the national flag carrier with considerable traffic from the Indian market, several aviation sector officials said.
The Open Skies Agreement between India and Sri Lanka enables SriLankan Airlines to operate more than 100 flights per week to 14 destinations in India. The restructuring process is expected to raise around US$ 500 million by handing over the profit making ground handling services, and Sri Lankan Catering, Minister de Silva disclosed.
This money to be raised from selling the subsidiaries would cover less than half of SriLankan Airlines’ $1.2 billion of debt, he said adding that the balance of the debt will have to be borne by the Treasury,
The airline officials informed that it had made $104 million as operating profit before interest payments resulting in a net profit of $3 million after interest expenses of $101 million.
Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva expressed concerns about the potential loss of jobs for approximately 6,000 employees at SriLankan Airlines if immediate restructuring measures are not implemented.
The Minister emphasized that the Government cannot sustain the financial losses incurred by SriLankan Airlines and it would be unfair to continue using taxpayer funds in this manner.
“SriLankan Airlines, established as our national carrier many years ago, holds a unique position. While it managed to generate a profit of Rs. 30 million during the period it was under the control of Emirates Airlines, it has struggled to achieve profitability otherwise,” he said.
The Minister said that SriLankan Airlines carries a debt of US$ 1.2 billion and various organizations, including local state banks, have had to cover outstanding payments for international bonds and leased planes.
The restructuring plan entails the Government retaining a 51% share, with the remaining 49% to be offered to another investor.
Cabinet approval of a comprehensive strategy would be sought to restructure the balance sheets of the Sri Lankan Airlines by June 2023 in accordance with a structural benchmark stipulated by the International Monetary Fund.
As per provisional financial statements, the operating loss of SLA was confined to Rs. 4.4 billion during the nine months ending December 2022, compared to the loss of Rs. 15.6 billion recorded during the corresponding period of 2021, the Central Bank annual report 2022 revealed.
Sri Lankan Airlines has recorded a marginal net profit of $3 million for the financial year 2022-23, for the first time of the airline after Emirates left the management in 2008, the airline officials disclosed to the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE).
PMD: President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasized the importance of avoiding misleading arguments and instead urged the entire opposition, led by the opposition leader, to join the government in addressing the country’s challenges.
He pointed out that the opposition’s allegations regarding the restructuring of local debt have been proven false.
The President encouraged the opposition to participate in the next presidential election and contribute to rebuilding the country by fulfilling their responsibilities to the people. He also expressed his willingness to assign additional duties to the opposition in consultation with the Speaker, if necessary.
These remarks were made by President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the “Amarawiru Abhiman 32” ceremony, which honoured Mr. Mahinda Amaraweera, the Minister of Agriculture, for his 32-year political career.
During the event, the President received a special commemorative edition of “Amaraviru Abhiman 32” and presented commemorative gifts to farmers, agriculture supporters, and students who achieved academic success in the Hambantota district.
Minister Mahinda Amaraweera presented a memento to President Ranil Wickremesinghe as a tribute to the people of Hambantota, and the President reciprocated by presenting a souvenir to Minister Amaraweera in appreciation of his dedicated service to the people of the district.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe further commented:
“Minister Mahinda Amaraweera has rendered outstanding service to the people of the country over his 32-year political career and 28-year parliamentary career. We should appreciate him for his wisdom and extensive experience as a politician. Throughout different eras, we have worked together as members of the party and the opposition, including serving under President Maithripala Sirisena’s leadership.
In continuation, as Prime Minister of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s government, I announced our intention to move forward with the participation of all members. In 2022, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa invited all Parliamentary party leaders to the President’s Office. Unfortunately, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya and Janata Vimukthi Peramuna boycotted the meeting.
During that time, I, along with Mr. R. Sampanthan and Mr. Maithripala Sirisena, discussed how to resolve this issue. Despite our efforts to bring everyone together after the incident on May 9, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya did not join us, even though they were offered the opportunity to participate without assuming the post of Prime Minister. Consequently, our government was formed, and we began our duties.
I was appointed President, Mr. Dinesh Gunawardena became the Prime Minister, and Mr. Mahinda Amaraweera was entrusted with the responsibility of the Agriculture Minister. Despite the challenges faced by the agriculture sector, Mr. Amaraweera’s leadership has allowed us to make significant progress.
We initiated a program to ensure an ample harvest before the Sinhala New Year in 2023 and formed food security committees. While we invited members from both the ruling party and the opposition to participate, the opposition did not attend. When the harvest yielded an abundance of crops, the committee presidents started distributing rice to the people, which sparked outrage among opposition members who felt excluded.
Mr. Mahinda Amaraweera and the dedicated officers who worked tirelessly on these efforts deserve our gratitude. We swiftly provided fertilizer to the farms, ensuring a seamless process from the shipment to the fields. This has contributed to food security and assistance to the less privileged.
Now, our focus is on promoting agriculture in the country, particularly export-oriented agriculture. We have mainly concentrated on meeting our domestic food requirements thus far, but it is time to produce crops that the world demands. To achieve this, we have launched a large-scale agricultural modernization effort.
Additionally, we have implemented a comprehensive plan for the development of livestock resources. We have received requests from Ambewela Company, the country’s leading livestock company, to provide them the Ridigama farm. We hope to fulfill this request to further develop the livestock sector in that area.
Notably, Amul, a renowned Indian company, has collaborated with our Livestock Development Board, and we have received interest from several other firms. It is important to highlight that we do not import animals from other countries. Instead, we encourage businesses to adopt and invest in this sector, which will lead to the emergence of new industries, particularly in the dairy sector.
Expanding our agricultural efforts, we aim to export eggs and chicken as well. However, we acknowledge that we cannot achieve this alone. Therefore, the government and the business sector must collaborate to drive these initiatives forward.
All these measures are being undertaken to ensure the country’s success. We have implemented various initiatives to improve financial stability, including reaching a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund last September. Budget recommendations for 2023 have been submitted to Parliament for execution.
Increasing taxes became necessary due to the circumstances we faced. I proposed that we all collectively undertake this task. However, the opposition at the time demanded to see a signed agreement and accused the government of corruption.
Despite facing obstacles and protests, we proceeded with the initiatives in January and February. Finally, in April, the International Monetary Fund’s Executive Board approved the agreement. It was a requirement to reach a debt restructuring agreement with the Paris Club, India, and China. The opposition initially claimed that China would not agree, but eventually, China consented in March.
We then aimed to present this agreement to Parliament for approval. However, the opposition did not support it. Subsequently, we had to negotiate with the creditors, which was entrusted to our officials.
During the negotiations, we emphasized the need to reduce not only foreign debt but also domestic debt. Failure to decrease domestic debt would result in a lack of funds to pay foreign debt, as we must purchase dollars in local currency. Thus, we requested a reduction in domestic debt.
The Governor of the Central Bank and my advisor suggested that this task could be accomplished without affecting bank deposits or the Employees Provident Fund. We initiated this proposition through the State Financial Committee, which summoned the necessary officials and conducted relevant inquiries. Eventually, they agreed to the suggestion.
However, when the proposal reached Parliament, it did not receive the necessary backing, as 62 MPs voted against it. The opposition raised three main arguments. First, they claimed that the Employees Provident Fund should not be touched. However, we did not touch it, and we legally safeguarded it by establishing a minimum interest rate of 9%.
Second, the opposition argued that banks, with their interest rates at 24%, should not be exempted from taxes. We explained that interest rates would decrease further in the future, and the Governor of the Central Bank projected inflation to be brought down to 9%, which would result in interest rates between 12% and 13%. If the opposition insisted on imposing taxes, we were open to considering the amount required.
The third objection focused on not increasing income tax for banks, as they claimed it would lead to increased interest rates. We clarified that if taxes were increased, banks would charge customers higher interest rates to compensate. Therefore, we requested the opposition to provide a feasible solution for this issue. However, these three arguments were ultimately rejected by the speakers.
To address concerns about the stability of bank deposits, we assured the public that their money would be safe and separate funds were in place. We rejected the opposition’s claims that the government had lied on two occasions and emphasized the importance of their support in solving the country’s issues. We also expressed willingness to engage in dialogue with the Speaker to consider assigning additional responsibilities to opposition members and involving them in advisory panels and other projects, such as establishing the Parliamentary Budget Office.”
Cabinet Ministers, led by Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, State Ministers, Deputy Ministers, Members of Parliament, political representatives, including Southern Province Governor Mr. Willie Gamage, government officials, and a large number of people from the Hambantota district also attended this event.
Minister of Agriculture Mr. Mahinda Amaraweera stated:
“During a challenging time when nobody took responsibility for the country, current President Ranil Wickremesinghe stepped up. Some doubted that this country, where people died in queues and farmers were deprived of the fertilizer they needed, could be revived. However, I accepted the position of Minister of Agriculture with the belief that we should all support the leader who took responsibility for the country to overcome these challenges. It is worth mentioning that the President’s policies quickly brought farmers back to the fields. We have plans in place to provide fertilizer to the farming community as soon as possible. The necessary arrangements have been made to supply all three types of fertilizers required for the upcoming season, ensuring a good yield in all regions. Moreover, efforts to modernize agriculture are currently underway, promising a revolution in this sector in a relatively short period.
The people of this country rejected all 225 Members of Parliament a year ago, and MPs were unable to take to the streets. Unfortunately, some seem to have forgotten this. Therefore, it is crucial that everyone supports the President’s agenda to prevent a repetition of the crisis the country faced.
It should be acknowledged that the people of this country have now realized that the current President, Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe, is the only leader capable of developing and propelling this country forward, as evidenced by the progress made within a year.”
Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Aviation Services, Mr. Nimal Siripala de Silva, remarked:
Mr. Mahinda Amaraweera has accomplished exceptional work for the people of the Hambantota district. I express my gratitude for the opportunity to congratulate him on the completion of his 32-year political career.
All of us supported the present President because we genuinely care about the country and its people. Mr. Mahinda Amaraweera was assigned the subject of agriculture, and in doing so, we contributed to restoring the country from chaos. We even sacrificed our party membership. Mahinda Amaraweera was a trailblazer, and it is essential to make the right decisions at the right time for the benefit of the country and its people.”
Cabinet Ministers, led by Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, State Ministers, Deputy Ministers, Members of Parliament, political representatives, including Southern Province Governor Mr. Willie Gamage, government officials, and many people from the Hambantota district also participated in this event.
The Secretary of State and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania Traian Hristea, who was on an official visit to Sri Lanka, met Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana recently.
The delegation was also accompanied by the Director of the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Diana Tase, the Councilor of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Bogdan Aldea and Dr. Victor Chiujdea, Ambassador Chargé d’Affairs.
Secretary of State Mr. Traian Hristea expressed his appreciation regarding the measures taken to establish a Sri Lankan embassy in Romania and stated that this is very important to establish a strong relationship between the two countries.
He expressed confidence that this will pave the way for cooperation between the two countries in many fields such as labor sector, education, trade, investment, cyber security, information technology and tourism.
Speaker Abeywardana who expressed his gratitude for giving Sri Lankans the opportunity to work in Romania, mentioned that Sri Lanka-Romanian Parliamentary Friendship Association has been started and through this, it is expected to further strengthen relations in the future. Furthermore, the Speaker also invited a delegation headed by the Speaker of the Romanian Parliament to visit Sri Lanka.
Apart from this, matters such as diplomatic relations, understanding between universities, problems arising in the visa process of those going for work were also discussed. Members of the Sri Lanka – Romanian Parliamentary Friendship Association, State Ministers Suren Raghavan and Ashoka Priyantha, and MPs Yadamini Gunawardena, Madhura Withanage, Velu Kumar, Shanakiyan Rasamanickam and the Secretary General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadeera attended the occasion.
COLOMBO, SRI LANKA, (3 July 2023) —The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has appointed Takafumi Kadono as the new Country Director for Sri Lanka, who has assumed office in Colombo today.
“It is an honor and a privilege to be appointed the Country Director of ADB’s Sri Lanka Resident Mission. ADB was a trusted partner of the people of Sri Lanka during the pandemic and the economic crisis. I intend to further enhance our collaboration as Sri Lanka embarks on a journey to recover from the crisis and come out stronger and more inclusive than ever before,” Mr. Kadono said. “ADB will support the government’s efforts to undertake reforms through budgetary support anchored on the International Monetary Fund program, while providing assistance to ensure that the people of Sri Lanka are well-supported through the transition.”
Mr. Kadono succeeds Mr. Chen Chen who ended his term as Country Director on 30 June 2023.
In a career spanning 23 years as a development professional, Mr. Kadono, a Japanese national, joined ADB in 2006 as a Young Professional in the East Asia Regional Department. He then held progressive positions in Central and West Asia Department and Southeast Asia Department as an Energy Specialist, including being stationed in Viet Nam from 2012 to 2015 where he led projects in the power sector value chain from generation and transmission to distribution. He also promoted the development of renewable energy in a fossil fuel dominated generation subsector.
He then joined the World Bank in 2015 as a Senior Energy Specialist for East Asia and the Pacific region where, in Viet Nam, he was involved in supporting the divestment of the state-owned power utility and the design of the wholesale electricity market and was also a member of the Climate Change and Green Growth Development Policy Operation. In the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, he led the formulation of the financial sustainability plan for the power sector, which was responsible for the bulk of public debt, advised the government on regional power trade, and was a member of the Green Growth Development Policy Operation. He also led complex hydropower projects and dam safety initiatives in East Asia and the Pacific and provided cross-support to operations in South Asia, Eastern Europe, and Africa.
Mr. Kadono returned to ADB in December 2020 as a Principal Planning and Policy Economist in the Strategy, Policy, and Partnerships Department where he was responsible for the strategic planning and policy formulation for ADB and served as the lead author for the work program and budget framework which provides a bank-wide strategic outlook for the 3-year planning horizon.
Prior to joining ADB, he spent 7 years as a consultant for energy, urban, water, and reconstruction projects across developing Asia and Latin America.
Mr. Kadono holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees in civil engineering from the University of Tokyo in Japan and has coauthored several publications for ADB and the World Bank on dam safety, power sector, and reviving of lakes and wetlands.
ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.
Colombo (LNW): The government’s domestic debt optimisation (DDO) strategy recently approved in Parliament should be carried out in a manner in which it affects both the ordinary working people and the rich people alike, emphasised Chairman of the Committee on Public Finances (CoPF) and SJB MP Dr. Harsha De Silva.
In the government’s failure to comply with this necessity, the Opposition had opposed the DDO plan, Silva said, reminding that the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF), which the ordinary working people will resort to following their retirement for the rest of their lives, has been affected by the DDO plan.
To justify this disparity the DDO strategy should affect both the working people and the rich and the bank owners alike, he pointed out.
“We as the Opposition strongly opposed the DDO strategy because the entire burden of it was to be placed on the EPF and the ETF. If the burden is shared among everyone else as a whole, it may be justified in some way,” Silva added.
Colombo (LNW): Finance State Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said the calling in of applications for the interest-free student loan scheme introduced by the government for students who have sat for the GCE Advanced Level examination in the objective of developing higher education in Sri Lanka will commence from tomorrow (04).
The new interest-free student loan scheme was introduced for 5,000 eligible students who have faced their ALs in the years 2019, 2020 and 2021 to pursue higher education in private universities.
Speaking to media, the State Minister emphasised that the Education Ministry will be announcing the availability of this new student loan scheme and students who wish to obtain it should be following job-oriented courses.
Accordingly, those who have faced the ALs in the said years can apply for this loan scheme from July 04 to July 07, he added.
The entire interest for this scheme is borne by the government of Sri Lanka, Siyambalapitiya noted.
Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka must adopt new growth and/or industrial strategies to direct the country’s industries towards a growth path, emphasised Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) Nandalal Weerasinghe, speaking at a conference yesterday (02).
The CBSL Chief noted that the country’s industrial sector must focus on export-oriented growth, in the necessity to revisit the National Industrial Development strategy in line with dynamics in international markets.
Sri Lanka should transform into an industrial sector of high-technological development, and the country’s entrepreneurs should be supported to gain access to global markets, Weerasinghe added.
Colombo (LNW): Four more dengue-related fatalities have been reported in Sri Lanka, having the death toll due to the outbreak up to 31, the Epidemiology Unit said.
As of now, 49,559 cases have been reported and the highest number of cases were found in the Gampaha District, which stands at 10,879, it added.
The Western Province reports 24,730 dengue cases this year, and the Epidemiology Unit has recognised 61 MOH areas to be vulnerable towards the disease.
Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella says a crucial programme under the guidance of President Ranil Wickremesinghe to prevent future shortages of medicines in the country will be implemented; asserts the government has taken measures to enhance the efficiency of the procurement process for importing medicines, with a particular focus on “ensuring their quality.”
The Finance Ministry announces the government’s domestic debt optimisation strategy will be made public within the next two days; adds the DDO programme will also be submitted to the other parties including the Employees Provident Fund.
Trade Minister Nalin Fernando says the government is working to drop out from the Co-operative Service Programme, in the absence of a proposal from the Co-operative on what kind of intervention should the government be making for the moving forward of the service; adds if the Co-operative Service is affected by the government’s intervention, the government should refrain from intervening in its activities.
Social Empowerment State Minister Anupa Pasqual says the list of eligible persons for the welfare benefits entitled to the differently-abled, elderly and sick persons will be made public next week; adds there is still time to submit the appeals or objections pertaining to the “Aswesuma” beneficiaries list, if such submissions have not yet been made: Trade Unions Director General and provocative UNP advocate Saman Ratnapriya says anyone not interested with the appeals process can refer a copy of the relevant appeals to the Presidential Secretariat.
Archbishop of Colombo HE Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith urges the President not to consider appointing SDIGs Nilantha Jayawardena and Deshabandu Tennakoon as the IGP; reminds the final report of the PCoI on Easter bombings clearly sets out that SDIG Tennakoon had merely conducted himself as a messenger and had failed to discharge his duties in the given circumstances; adds SDIG Tennakoon had spearheaded the Police probe into the discovery of a hand grenade at All Saints Church in 2022, which led to the arbitrary and baseless arrest of workers of the church; stresses PCoI report also says that SDIG Jayawardena was the most responsible person for the inaction that resulted in the April 2019 bombings.
SLPP MP Rohitha Abeygunawardena calls JVP/NPP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake “a hypocrite” over his recent tour to Australia, accusing him of being accommodated “a business class flight” when his party speaks of Sri Lanka’s economy.
Sri Lanka reports four more dengue-related fatalities, rising the death toll to 31: According to the Epidemiology Unit, 49,559 cases have been reported so far, with the highest number from the Gampaha District which stands at 10,879: The Epidemiology Unit recognises 61 MOH areas most vulnerable to dengue.
Finance Secretary Mahinda Siriwardena to travel to Beijing soon to work out nitty-gritties, with China pledging to fully cooperate in the external debt restructuring process: China being the largest bilateral creditor to Sri Lanka to observe discussions among Japan, India and France regarding the island’s debt restructuring process: The Chinese government has authorised EXIM Bank to engage with the SL authorities on debt restructuring.
Aviation Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva chairs a special discussion between the civil aviation authorities of Sri Lanka and Israel regarding the commencement of direct passenger flights from Tel Aviv to Colombo: Civil Aviation Authority says a MoU between the two countries is to be signed soon.
Sri Lanka qualifies for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, after beating Zimbabwe by 09 wickets in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe and securing a place in the final of the ongoing qualifying tournament: Chasing a target of 166 (32.2 overs), SL were anchored by Pathum Nissanka, who scored 101 off 102: Spinner Maheesh Theekshana and left-arm fast bowler Dilshan Madushanka play well by sharing seven wickets between them.
