Colombo (LNW): The Government of India has agreed to promoted and strengthen renewable energy sector cooperation between Sri Lanka and India, in response to recent developments in the sector proposed by the Ranil – Rajapaksa government.
Accordingly, the Cabinet has granted approval enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two nations for renewable energy cooperation. Thereby, public and private entities of the two neighbours will commit for the development of the renewable energy sector.
Accordingly, projects on solar power, wind power, and bio fuel will be implemented, as approved by the Cabinet.
Colombo (LNW): Deprose Muchena, Senior Director of the global human rights watchdog Amnesty International, spilled the tea by slamming the Sri Lankan government, in what he suggested as Sri Lanka being one of the many countries that disrupted the right to protest of the people.
The Amnesty Senior Director made this remark addressing the regional launch of the organisation’s global annual report in Colombo today (28), as the key speaker.
Muchena emphasised that human rights came under attack, and repression has taken the course in the most ‘calculated order,’ adding that repression did not pick and choose where it happened, as global protest movements being faced with brute force, with killings, with mass arrests and with all manner human rights abuses. This happened not only in Sri Lanka, but also in the region, as well as the continent, he pointed out.
“We know that there is a discussion around support from the International Monetary Fund that is being discussed between your government and yourselves. Amnesty International calls for transparency on that deal so that everything that has been debated in within the public purview. Social protection to be prioritised and for human rights to be enhanced because no aid mechanism should diminish human rights. Everything that happens between countries as part of cooperation should enhance the protection of people, their safety and their ability to pursue their own rights,” Muchena noted.
Mr. Muchena aims to use his presence as the Senior Director of Amnesty International to highlight and stress on the urgent need to protect and promote the rights of 22 million people living in Sri Lanka.
Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka will become the first country in the region to adopt a green economy, as the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Power and Energy, and the Climate Change Office work together to introduce a green economic policy focused on renewable energy within the next two months, according to President Ranil Wickremesinghe.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe expressed his aim to place Sri Lanka at the forefront of green economic policy, much like its success in tea exports.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe announced this during a meeting with investors who attended the Sri Lanka Green Energy Summit, which took place at the President’s Office yesterday (27).
President Wickremesinghe also expressed his gratitude to the investors who participated in the Clean Green Energy Summit and pledged to provide the necessary facilities to meet their investment requirements.
Sri Lanka is currently facing two major challenges – debt restructuring and transitioning to green energy. While debt restructuring is already underway, the country must also act quickly to establish a green economy. Sri Lanka has great potential to generate energy through renewable sources such as solar, wind, biogas, and sea waves. President Wickremesinghe believes that transitioning to a green economy could be the key to building a stronger economy for Sri Lanka.
The President also committed to facilitating local and foreign investors who attended the conference, and confirmed that a green economic policy will be implemented within the next two months, which would be the first of its kind in the region.
The investors who attended the conference will be given legitimacy, and the government is committed to providing them with the necessary support. The green economic policy is not a short-term program, but a long-term initiative that requires a legal framework. The President emphasized the need for legislation to be passed promptly to adjust to the new policy.
The President expressed his appreciation for the investors and their contribution to Sri Lanka’s recovery through the green economy. He stated that he aims to make Sri Lanka the world’s first in the green economy, just as the country has achieved the world’s first in tea.
The President highlighted that Sri Lanka has the potential to become the first in Asia in green energy, thanks to its natural resources and the experienced investors present at the meeting. He also mentioned the on-going discussion of bringing an oil pipeline from India to Trincomalee, and emphasized the importance of cooperation with South India in moving towards renewable energy.
According to the President, Trincomalee has been identified as a potential port for green hydrogen due to its proximity to the North, which has abundant sources of green hydrogen, renewable energy, and strong wind power in Sri Lanka. He added that this would create development opportunities for the country and investors, leading to economic expansion and good returns on investment.
The investors who attended the Sri Lanka Green Energy Summit expressed their gratitude to President Ranil Wickremesinghe for the hospitality and stated their intention to return to Sri Lanka in the future to invest in the green economy sector.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Sabri, Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera, Environment Minister Naseer Ahmed, State Minister Dilum Amunugama, Senior Advisor to the President on Climate Change Ruwan Wijewardene, International Adviser to the President on Climate Change Eric Solheim, Dr. Anil Jasinghe, Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, as well as local and foreign investors and other officials participated in this discussion at the Presidential Secretariat.
Colombo (LNW): The United Nations Population Fund-UNFPA congratulated Sri Lanka on its achievements in developing robust national evaluation capacities, at the policy, institutional, and professional levels.
This was stated when President Ranil Wickremesinghe met with a delegation of UNFPA officials, including Mr Marco Segone, Director of the Evaluation Office of the United Nations Population Fund, at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday (27).
The UNFPA delegation commended President Wickremesinghe’s leadership in promoting evaluation, particularly in the public sector, which they said will play a significant role in addressing the challenges faced by Sri Lanka.
UNFPA representatives acknowledged Sri Lanka’s significant progress in developing strong national evaluation capabilities compared to other nations. As a result, President Ranil Wickremesinghe announced that a bill related to this matter would be presented to parliament for approval.
UNFPA representatives praised President Wickremesinghe’s leadership in approving the national policy on gender equality and women’s empowerment, recognizing it as a crucial step towards ensuring sexual and reproductive health and rights in Sri Lanka.
The visiting UNFPA delegation expressed their commitment to supporting the development of national evaluation capacity in the country, recognizing its importance in promoting accountability and good governance to achieve the sustainable development goals, particularly in the areas of gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Member of Parliament Mr. Kabir Hashim, National Evaluation Capacity Development Expert Mr. Asela Kalugampitiya and a group of officials from the Evaluation Office of the United Nations Population Fund were among those who participated in this event.
DailyFT: The IMF Board approved a 48-month extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) of SDR 2.286 billion (about $ 3 billion) to support Sri Lanka’s economic policies and reforms. The Sri Lanka Government and business elite have welcomed the approval of the 17th IMF program, despite the failures of every one of the previous deals and the negative impact they had on the poor and vulnerable people of the country.
Kristalina Georgieva, the Managing Director of the IMF issued a press release on 20 March stating:
“The objectives of the EFF-supported program are to restore macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability, safeguarding financial stability, and stepping up structural reforms to unlock Sri Lanka’s growth potential. All program measures are mindful of the need to protect the most vulnerable and improving governance.
Close collaboration between Sri Lanka and all its creditors will be critical to expedite a debt treatment that will restore debt sustainability consistent with program parameters.”
The IMF correctly claims that the Sri Lankan economy is facing significant challenges stemming from pre-existing vulnerabilities and policy missteps in the lead up to the crisis. Rampant corruption, poor governance and mismanagement are also significant contributors to the nation’s plight.
Bretton Woods system
What the IMF fails to highlight is how Sri Lanka’s catastrophic economic and humanitarian crisis has been aggravated by the ongoing Bretton Woods economic system of monetary management. The World Bank (WB), International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the global rules for commercial and financial relations were established in 1944 under this system.
While these rules were presented as an apolitical effort to rebuild the world economy, many countries in the global south view them as an effort to defend or expand the reach of Europe, and to promote US interests in particular, to this day.
Extensive academic literature, challenges the robustness of the theoretical and evidence bases for World Bank and IMF principles and policies. Together they suggest that World Bank and IMF policies have failed to achieve their stated objectives and instead support an economic order that benefits elites and private sector interests at the expense of poor and marginalised communities.
Some of the most common criticisms of the World Bank and IMF identified by a UK based campaign group Bretton Woods Project, is its records on:
nDemocratic governance (Structural under-representation of the Global South, Undermining democratic ownership, Biased and inconsistent decision-making, Weak ability to learn from past mistakes, Effective impunity for harms caused.)
nHuman rights (Restricting the macroeconomic environment for human rights, Causing major harms through development projects, Lacking evidence for positive impacts while not measuring harmful impacts.)
nEnvironment (Growth-based model unsustainable, Continued fossil fuel investments, Focus on mega-projects, Deforestation)
Shortcomings of the IMF-EFF
In the context of Bretton Woods system’s shortcomings, the statement by Kristalina Georgieva should concern citizens of Sri Lanka due to its failure to place the wellbeing of people and environment at the heart of its policy objectives. The IMF still fails to recognise that simply restoring macroeconomic stability and safeguarding financial stability in isolation does not automatically improve wellbeing. Their policies are underpinned by an ideological belief in ‘trickle-down’ economics that has brought unprecedented levels of inequality and hardships to people even in cities such as London and New York.
Although all program measures are mindful of the need to protect the most vulnerable, they lack ambition or commitment to tackle low wages, long hours, precarious work and extortionate living costs. IMF demands for stepping up structural reforms to unlock Sri Lanka’s growth potential shows once again its inability to learn from past mistakes. The austerity program undertaken by the Government under the cover of IMF negotiations is having a devastating impact on children, women, the elderly and those who are disabled.
IMF’s Debt Sustainability Analysis on Sri Lanka remained closed to public scrutiny until the agreement was approved. A further lack of transparency on the conditions imposed on the Government is a further cause of concern. Government commitments to transparently achieve a debt resolution, consistent with the program parameters and equitable burden sharing among creditors has little legitimacy without a people’s mandate to govern. The interests of overseas private creditors who have provided debts at predatory interest rates to members of this same Government responsible for mismanagement, should not be placed ahead of the ordinary people of Sri Lanka.
Inadequate measures are being taken to tackle corruption or holding those responsible for previous irregularities to account. The ongoing efforts to tackle corruption is insufficient. A comprehensive anti-corruption reform agenda with clear actions and timelines has still not been published by the Government. Neither has the IMF meaningfully elaborated or quantified on what it means by ‘reducing corruption vulnerabilities’ stated in its latest staff report. Its objectives are ambiguous and insufficient to have the necessary impact (to improve governance by identifying specific priority reforms; to strengthen the asset declaration system and the independence of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption; to reduce opportunities for corruption by expanding the reliance on digitalisation in areas such as revenue administration and procurement).
Institutional reforms, globally
Institutions and governance frameworks require comprehensive reforms. In depth reforms are also necessary at a global level. Sri Lanka has failed to have hidden stolen assets recovered from off-shore accounts or from those sitting in the global north. Illicit financial outflows through mis-invoicing continues into the international banking system denying the country essential foreign exchange.
The World Bank and IMF have failed to publish any impact assessments on countries of the global south, resulted from the large scale fiscal stimulus programs undertaken in the Global North. Despite the increased money supply of global reserve currencies, multilateral institutions remain underfunded. The excess volumes of newly ‘printed’ money eventually ends up in the hands of hedge funds, private equity firms or the commercial money markets. The existing system is designed to ensure that many poor countries borrow money from commercial money markets, an idea that has been ‘legitimised’ through financialisation of the global economy. Half of Sri Lanka’s sovereign debts are to private creditors.
Sri Lanka is not operating on a level playing field and the IMF is not helping to change it.
Navigating imperfections of the global economic order
Sri Lanka first requires extensive reforms to its political culture, while protecting democracy and human rights. It must work towards meritocracy, pragmatism and honesty to improve economic, social and environmental outcomes of its people. Law and order should apply to every citizen equally. Political interference in public institutions should cease. An urgent solution is required to unite communities with a fair resolution to the ethnic problem. Rampant corruption has to be eliminated starting by holding those to account for past scandals.
The country should take a non-aligned position in geopolitical battles, develop a clear industrial strategy and be one where it is easy to do business.
Sri Lanka therefore needs a government with a clear mandate from its people to navigate the imperfections of the global economic system.
Only then would Sri Lanka be able to fully engage with the world but protect itself against major excesses of the unjust global economic order and become a country that provides care, order, security and certainty to its people.
Colombo (LNW): MP W.D.J. Seneviratne was appointed as the Chair to the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Just and Law-Abiding Society. The appointment took place on March 23 in Parliament, as the MP’s name was proposed by MP Thalatha Athukorala and seconded by MP Anura Priyadarshana Yapa.
The first meeting of Sectoral Oversight Committee on Just and Law-Abiding Society was held where the Committee Chair was appointed.
By looking into the opinions of the public about the institutions dealing with law and justice in the country, the Chair stated that he wishes to provide encouragement and guidance to those institutions through the Sectoral Oversight Committee.
MPs Rauff Hakeem and K.P.S. Kumarasiri were present at the Committee meeting held, and Parliament Assistant Secretary General Tikiri K. Jayathilake and Director Legislative Services / Director Communication (Acting) H.E. Janakantha Silva also attended the occasion.
Colombo (LNW): The all-important export sector is awaiting urgent relief from higher authorities following the Shipping Minister arbitrarily revoking a Gazette on 28 February which was introduced after two consecutive Budget proposals in 2012 and 2013.
The aim was to eliminate anti-competitive practices by service providers by distorting transport costs adding surcharges on exports and imports by unbundling freight to avoid market forces.
The Gazette which was originally issued in 2013 under the instruction of the then President as Finance Minister and Shipping Minister was untouched by previous regimes although a lobby was constantly at them by certain service providers to make undue profits by removing the Gazette.
The Gazette was suddenly rescinded by the current Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva and his Secretary Ruwan Chandra without any consultation with the relevant authorities of the Ministry of Policy and Planning or the Cabinet and the Finance Ministry who initiated the laws to make exporters more competitive and to protect the consumers in 2013.
Sources said former Shipping Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe had further strengthened the Gazette in 2017 and former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake way back in 2002 mooted the same as Trade Minister and reconfirmed the status in 2016 by supporting the Gazette when lobbied against it by service providers when he was Finance Minister.
The same was the stance by late Mangala Samaraweera who wanted to liberalize shipping with proper anti-competitive regulations.
It is learnt that exporters/importers consisting of all sectors apparel, rubber, tea and the shipper’s council, essential import commodities have sought relief from the higher authorities as the Shipping Ministry has given them a cold shoulder and taken the view to support the middleman who are the service providers who had introduced different surcharges and concepts such as zero freighting for nearly twenty years prior to 2012-13 Gazette.
Opposition MP Dr. Harsha De Silva brought to the attention of Parliament and Minister Nimal Sirpala de Silva the consequences if this law was removed and how exporters and consumers will suffer, during the last budget debate.
Minister promised to talk to the exporters and not to revoke the same without studying it at length. However exporters and importers say the reverse has happened suddenly and the competition law was removed silently.
The exporters have sought higher authorities’ intervention to bring the law back as a policy and planning matter in the national interest. They also say that this Gazette as a budget proposal was debated in Parliament and introduced as a bipartisan law and the very same Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva voted in favour of it in Parliament in 2013.
“Therefore it is shocking and it has baffled the trading community to say the least how policies are made and dismantled in the country which also give a complete a wrong signals to traders and international community at this juncture where buyers have accepted the Gazette ten years back as it adopts ICC guidelines of moving away from FOB to FCA in container cargo paid by a contracting party,” industry sources said.
The year 2023 is expected to be very challenging to exporters due to global and local conditions. Cumulative export earnings in the first two months have declined by 10% to $ 1.98 billion.
Last year the export sector helped to bring much needed foreign exchange with its best ever performance. Earnings from exports in 2022 surpassed $ 13 billion for the first time, recording an increase of 4.9% from the previous highest recorded in 2021.
Colombo (LNW): The programme to distribute free rice to 2.9 million low-income families commenced March (26) in the Colombo District under the patronage of President’s Senior Adviser on National Security and Chief of Presidential Staff Sagala Ratnayake.
The programme was carried out with a focus on the Dematagoda, Narahenpita, and Wellawatta areas, which fall under the Thimbirigasaya Divisional Secretariat Division.
As part of the programme, 995 recipients received bags of rice at the Mihidusenpura Community Hall in Dematagoda, 448 recipients received rice at the Dabare Mawatha Community Hall in Narahenpita, and 169 recipients were given rice at the Ranjan Wijeratnapura Community Hall in Wellawatta.
The distribution of free rice to low-income families for two months is part of the government’s 2022/2023 Maha season rice purchase and rice stock disposal programme, which was implemented on the instructions of President Ranil Wickremesinghe. Each family will receive 10 kg of rice per month during this period.
Initially, the rice subsidy was intended for 2 million families, but it was later expanded to 2.9 million families as per the directives of the President. The programme’s first phase will be rolled out in several districts, including Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara, Kandy, Ratnapura, Galle, and Matara.
Addressing the programme held at the Mihidusenpura Community Hall in Dematagoda, Ratnayake explained how Sri Lanka was able to turn a corner during a difficult period with the assistance of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The President’s Chief of Staff emphasised that the country had faced an economic crisis due to wrong decisions made in the past, but now under the leadership of President Wickremesinghe, the country is following a more appropriate economic programme.
During the event, Ratnayake interacted with the attendees and listened to some of the issues they were facing.
The Colombo District Secretary, K.G. Wijesiri, and senior officials from the Ministry of Social Empowerment were present at the event.
Colombo (LNW): The Parliament of Sri Lanka will convene only on Tuesday, April 04, 2023 during the next Parliament week, as decided at the Committee on Parliamentary Businesses four days ago (24), revealed Parliament Secretary General Dhammika Dasanayake.
Accordingly, Parliament will convene on April 04, 2023 at 9.30 am, with time for questions for oral answers being allotted from 9.30 am to 10.30 am.
The schedule will follow the debate on the approval of an order published in the Gazette declaration No. 2306/15 under the Order under the Sri Lanka Export Development Act pertaining to amending the CESS Tax and Two Regulations under the Imports and Exports (Control) Act published in the Gazette declaration No. 2320/46 and No. 2320/47, from 10.30 am to 5 pm.
Thereafter, time will be allotted for questions at the Adjournment Time from 5 pm to 5.30 pm.
In addition, Parliament will convene from Tuesday, April 25, 2023, to Friday, April 28, 2023, in accordance with the decisions made by the Committee, Dasanayake added.
Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka is having regular consultations with the US with regards to the Hambantota Port as well as dealings with the Chinese, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said.
He also dismissed fears that the Hambantota Port will be used by China for military purposes.
“The Chinese don’t own the port. We own the port, but we have given all the operations of the port to China Merchants.
This is because we found that the Colombo Port Authority was unable to manage the port, and we were making big losses. There were no takers for the port, except China Merchant. Our other option was to close it,” the President said.
He said the security of the port is controlled by the Government of Sri Lanka, and the Southern Command of Sri Lanka’s Navy will remain in Hambantota.
“A number of US and Japanese warships have visited the port. The port has no basic military value. The Chinese will not use it for military purposes. They can’t. We have had regular consultations with the US in regard to this port as well as dealings with the Chinese,” the President said.
The President also said that looking at the arrangement at the ports that the Chinese are building in Africa and somewhere in the Bay of Bengal, the Hambantota port will be a crucial port as far as commercial activities are concerned.
“I think this will be one of the ports where the goods are assembled and reshipped to other destinations. I can’t see a military use for it and the Chinese haven’t the ability to have a large number of warships in the Indian Ocean any way, to counter India and the US,” he said.
The President also highlighted the rising competition between China and the Quad, which has been further aggravated by the newly formed ‘Aukus’ pact between Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasized that Sri Lanka’s access to the growing Indian and African markets should not be disrupted by any big power rivalry or conflict, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said.
Additionally, he stated that Sri Lanka supports ASEAN’s vision of the Indo-Pacific region and is committed to ensuring the freedom of navigation in the Indian Ocean and the security of undersea cables, as it is essential for the future of the country
President Ranil Wickremesinghe expressed these views during an interview organized by Harvard University through Zoom technology.
