The sentencing of a former Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police for giving illegal orders not to arrest a suspect.
The reported sentencing of former Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police, Lalith Jayasinghe, for giving illegal orders to prevent the arrest of a person allegedly involved in the shooting which resulted in the death of some persons, was a sentence of five years in prison, by the High Court Judge of Ratnapura. While the particular case may be of interest from a political point of view due to the Member of the Parliament who was later arrested and convicted and later acquitted by the Court of Appeal, this case is of enormous importance from another point of view. This is one of the unique cases in which a very senior Police officer who has held the rank of a Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police has been held guilty of giving illegal orders to an Officer-In-Charge of a Police station who was carrying out an inquiry into the relevant shootings and murders.
The importance lies in the fact that the complaints about the interferences of higher Police officers into the workings of the Police investigators who are investigating into crimes, is a complaint that is being heard so very frequently. In fact, it is no exaggeration to say that such interferences have reached epidemic levels. This instance where the investigating Officer-In-Charge of the Police had the courage to complain about this incident and pursue the complaint over a period of almost eight years till a conviction has been reached should set an example for others who are facing similar situations throughout the country.
The importance of this case lies in the fact of the key role played by the Officers-In-Charge of the Police who according to the Criminal Procedure Code of Sri Lanka have the duty to conduct inquiries into all crimes which are being reported in their respective jurisdictions. It is the function of the Officers-in-Charge of the Police to ensure investigations into all crimes that keep the security of the society and also to provide security to the people. People can walk on the roads peacefully and conduct their daily affairs such as small businesses and many other transactions and also conduct their neighbourhood relationships peacefully, only due to the fact that the legal system of Sri Lanka has provided like it has also provided in almost all countries for the function of the Police to intervene into any kind of criminal interference into the freedoms of the people by exercising the powers given to them as investigators into crimes.
Perhaps, the one issue that may be of general interest to all families throughout Sri Lanka today is the duty of the Police to investigate into various crimes relating to the drug trade as this overwhelming problem has emerged in this society affecting families, schools, neighbourhood relationships and also many other factors which cause social unrest and its instability due to the failures of those criminal investigators who have failed to bring this widespread crime under control.
When inquiries are being made into by some of the Police officers, many of them frankly tell that they have tried their best and are in fact trying their best to get this situation under control but that they are prevented from acting because of the orders that are coming down to them from their higher authorities. When a higher ranking Police officer interfere with the investigations into crimes, they are in fact acting criminally as the instructions they give to the local Police stations to prevent them from doing investigations itself becomes a source of the increase of crimes.
Thus, Sri Lanka must today deal with the issue of higher ranking Police officers themselves being part of a criminal enterprise directly or indirectly by the manner in which they obstruct the investigations of crimes by the Officers-In-Charge of the Police who exercise their powers under the Criminal Procedure Code of Sri Lanka. In fact, the kingpin of crime control is the Officers-In-Charge of the Police. If their work is interfered with by a higher officer, this is a very serious crime and also an action against social stability.
The sabotage of criminal investigations
There is a need for a strategy to stop the sabotage of investigation of crimes by higher ranking Police officers.
A section of higher ranking officers has become a formidable obstacle for crime investigation in Sri Lanka. Had it not been for this, much of the very serious crimes including those relating to the drug trade can be stopped overnight.
These officers in fact offer a greater threat to social stability, peace and the psychological well-being of people including family stability than any other section of society. Thus, they are by now a national security threat, because a crime ridden society threatens every aspect of society.
These officers may argue that they are a creation of bad politicians. However, this is no excuse and not a defence. Besides, as it had happened in this case, politicians will not come to rescue these officers when they face criminal charges in courts.
As part of its work on a charter regulating the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the media, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is inviting contributions from the media and civil society organisations, above all those specialising in the media. These contributions will help the committee created at RSF’s initiative to identify appropriate responses for media professionals to the rapid deployment of AI technology.
After the creation of an international committee to work on this issue it now falls to media professionals and civil society organisations throughout the world to express their views. So that their thoughts on the application of media ethics to AI can be incorporated into the committee’s work, RSF is providing them with this link to a form in which they can share their views. The deadline for submitting contributions is 11 October 2023.
“RSF would like to include media and organisations around the world as broadly as possible in a collective discussion on this subject of vital importance for the integrity of news and information. We urge civil society to take up this call to share their vision of journalistic ethics applied to artificial intelligence.”
Christophe Deloire RSF secretary-general
The four main themes on which the AI Charter committee is working are reflected in the form, which is designed so that the media can express themselves on the same issues as the members of the committee chaired by journalist and Nobel peace laureate Maria Ressa. Each of these themes corresponds to specific challenges that the media must address. RSF asks media professionals to say what they think should be done to respond effectively:
Information gathering: The advent of generative artificial intelligence (GAI) – the set of AI tools that can generate text, images, audio and other media content on demand – facilitates the production of synthetic content enormously. But journalists must be able to continue to identify authentic content quickly and with certainty. What tools and working methods should the media and journalists adopt to address these new challenges?
Information processing: The growing use of AI tools in the media raises concerns about reliability, bias and data leakage. Algorithms that analyse data and generate content are liable to alter the bases of journalistic ethics. Furthermore, biases inherent in the training datasets of AI systems are amplified in the content they produce. Also, the use of AI to optimise audience reach can encourage the dissemination of narratives that favour sensationalism at the expense of balanced, nuanced reporting. Finally, the lack of transparency of AI systems also poses a problem. What characteristics should the AI systems used by journalists have, and what work procedures should be put in place to ensure that the news content produced meets the standards of quality journalism?
Information dissemination: The ubiquitous recommendation algorithms in social media steer users in specific directions and strongly influence the visibility and dissemination of online content, while search engines direct traffic massively towards certain content at the expense of alternatives. In addition to the dangers posed by large platforms, the media themselves increasingly use sophisticated technology to disseminate content in accordance with their own interests. Search engines integrated into media websites and push mechanisms in media mobile apps could soon be reinforced by AI’s power. What would be the best ways to serve the right to reliable news and information?
Strategic positioning of media vis-à-vis AI sector companies: The news industry continues to be disrupted by platform intermediation in the dissemination of news, but now it must also grapple with the emergence of new players, the AI producers, who can both compete with them and provide them with the tools required for the production of quality news and information. How should media companies behave towards AI providers and Big Tech companies in general?
To explore these questions further, RSF is making two of the committee’s working documents available to the public. The first, entitledChallenges raised by AI regarding the right to information, provides a full and detailed list of the challenges. The second, entitled AI and Media Ethics : Existing References and overview, provides an overview of the various existing ethical initiatives in AI and journalism, in order to underscore the innovative and pioneering aspects that the AI in the Media Charter project initiated by RSF intends to provide.
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe held bilateral discussions with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during his official visit to Berlin for the ‘Berlin Global Dialogue’ forum.
Accompanied by a high-level delegation, including Senior Advisor to the President on National Security & Chief of Staff Mr. Sagala Ratnayaka, President’s Senior Advisor on Economic Affairs Dr. R.H.S Samarathunga, Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ms. Aruni Wijewardhena, and Private Secretary to the President Ms. Sandra Perera, the talks aimed to address bilateral concerns and bolster relations between the two countries.
1. Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Economic and Physical Plans Mahindananda Aluthgamage says his Committee has identified the reasons for the shortfall of 15% of Govt Revenue this year amounting to Rs.500 bn: asserts a Committee of officials will be established to monitor the Inland Revenue Dept, SL Customs and Excise Dept, since the reduction in tax is due to the inefficiency & corruption of bureaucrats, and the absence of properly developed systems at the 3 institutions.
2. Bloomberg reports that some Committee members on the Committee of SL’s Official Creditors push for a deal to restructure SL’s debt without China: want the group of major creditors, including US, Japan & India, to sign a MOU with Sri Lanka.
3. Public Utilities Commission decides to call for public views and proposals on the proposed Electricity Tariff Hike, which is to be effective from October’23.
4. Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera advises the Animal Production and Health Department to start research to introduce 2 species of cattle & goats suitable for SL in order to increase the production of milk & meat: says one of the main reasons affecting the increase in livestock production in SL is the lack of suitable animals for the respective products.
5. General Manager, Railways says there are “productive solutions” to prevent elephants being run over by trains: laments that the lack of funds has caused the delay of implementing these measures: meanwhile, 4 elephants killed on Wednesday (27) after being knocked down by the night mail train from Colombo to Kankesanthurai.
6. Govt expenditure for the year 2024 estimated at Rs.3,860 bn, as per the Appropriation Bill.
7. Govt Ayurvedic Medical Officers’ Assn Media Secretary Dr Indunil Jayasinghe says about 100 Ayurvedic doctors have already left the country with a significant fraction anticipating to migrate: the GAMOA also says the Govt has no sustainable solution at present, and that there is a demand for Ayurvedic doctors in New Zealand, Canada, Germany, UK and Australia.
8. SriLankan Airlines says several flights were cancelled due to “technical issues” over the last few days & every effort is being made to accommodate passengers on alternative flights: also says these are “routine issues”, and aircraft maintenance follows very strict procedures which necessitate repairs or replacement of parts before an aircraft is cleared for flying.
9. Prosecutors in Nagoya, Japan say they have decided not to charge officials at an Immigration Center in the city over the 2021 death of a Sri Lankan detainee, Wishma despite her family’s repeated calls for them to be indicted: the lawyer representing the family says the prosecutors “covered up & disregarded a crime committed by those in power”: vows to continue to fight.
10. Jaswar Umar elected President of the Sri Lanka Football Federation at the election for office bearers: polls 45 votes while his rival Thilanga Dakshitha polled 20.
Chinese Ambassador to Colombo, Qi Zhenhong, reiterated China’s steadfast commitment to supporting Sri Lanka in pursuing a development path that aligns with its national conditions, enabling the country to overcome poverty and foster non-development obstacles.
Ambassador Qi emphasized that China warmly welcomes all nations, including Sri Lanka, to participate in China’s developmental endeavors. Despite China’s significant contribution to global growth, with a share exceeding 30 percent in the past decade, the country remains the world’s most extensive developing nation with a population exceeding 1.4 billion.
Furthermore, Ambassador Qi urged all countries to uphold mutual respect, seek common ground while preserving differences, and collaborate to address contemporary challenges. He emphasized the importance of creating a shared future for humanity and working collectively to overcome global challenges.
Sri Lanka’s tourist arrivals are expected to top 1.5 million in 2023, Chairman of Sri Lanka’s Tourism Development Authority Priyantha Fernando said.
Sri Lanka welcomed its millionth tourist for the year on September 26.
“Looking at the targets we had set for 2023, we are ahead of targets,” Fernando said at an event marking World Tourism Day.
“We have achieved one million tourists up to now.”
An initial target for 1,550,000 tourists set for 2023 will be exceeded, he said.
In April 2023, officials said they were planning to revise the arrival target to 2.0 million for 2023, based on strong first quarter arrivals.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization cited its own tourism barometer on the global tourism sector in May and said that international arrivals reached 80 percent of pre-pandemic levels in the first quarter of 2023.
In 2023, an estimated 235 million tourists across the world travelled internationally for the first three months.
“International tourism is well on its way to returning to pre-pandemic levels, with twice as many people travelling during the first quarter of 2023 than in the same period of 2022,” the body said in a statement.
In the first 20 days of September Sri Lanka welcomed 75,222 tourists, according to official data.
Up to August 2023 Sri Lanka was estimated to have earned 1,304 million US dollars from tourism, up 56 percent from a year earlier according to tourism survey data.
Fernando said the sector hoped to the largest foreign exchange earner for the economy by 2027.
UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili in a statement released in May said, “International tourism receipts grew back to hit the USD1 trillion mark in 2022, growing 50 percent in real terms compared to 2021, driven by the important rebound in international travel. International visitor spending reached 64 percent of pre-pandemic levels (-36 percent compared to 2019, measured in real terms).”
The UNWTO Panel of Experts claimed the economic situation to be the main wavering factor affecting international tourism in 2023, with high inflation and rising oil prices translating into higher transport and accommodation costs.
The Meteorological Department of Sri Lanka has issued a warning indicating that the current showery weather pattern in the southwestern part of the island is expected to persist. Showers or thundershowers are forecasted in intervals in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, and North-western provinces, as well as in the Kandy and Nuwara-Eliya districts.
Certain areas in the Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces, as well as Galle, Matara, and Puttalam districts, may experience fairly heavy showers, with accumulations reaching around 75mm. In the Northern province and Anuradhapura district, a few showers are anticipated.
Additionally, fairly strong winds at speeds of about (40-45) kmph are expected intermittently in the western slopes of the central hills, Northern, North-central, and North-western provinces, as well as in Trincomalee and Hambantota districts.
Colombo (LNW): Former President of the Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL), Jaswar Umar, has once again secured his position as the President of Football Sri Lanka.
This was when yesterday’s (29) election witnessed Umar winning with a decisive 45-20 vote.
Earlier this year, FIFA had suspended the FFSL starting from January 21, 2023, citing external interference in the Federation’s affairs and issues surrounding the Sri Lankan Football elections held in the same month.
However, FIFA lifted the suspension in August this year, attributing to the FFSL’s adherence to stipulated guidelines, which included the design and implementation of an electoral roadmap.
Following this roadmap, yesterday’s election took place, leading to the reinstatement of Umar as the President.
To mark 59 years of capacity building partnership between India and Sri Lanka through Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC), High Commission of India in Colombo celebrated ITEC Day 2023 on 27 September 2023.
Hon. Dr. Suren Raghavan, State Minister of Higher Education and Dr. Satyanjal Pandey, Deputy High Commissioner graced the occasion as the Chief Guest and the Guest of Honour respectively. The event was attended by over 100 participants, which included ITEC alumni from Sri Lanka, officials and professionals from diverse sectors who have participated in various training courses in India under different ITEC programmes.
In his address, Hon. State Minister of Higher Education lauded the historically close relations between India and Sri Lanka. Dr. Raghavan congratulated India for the successful Chandrayaan-3 mission and especially praised Indian women scientists involved in the lunar mission. He appreciated India for offering ITEC slots and annual scholarships to Sri Lankan nationals, and thanked India for the financial support extended to Sri Lanka in recent months. Hon. Minister highlighted the scope for further cooperation between India and Sri Lanka in the field of higher education, skill development and capacity building, especially in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and IT sectors. He encouraged the beneficiaries of ITEC programmes to contribute not only the development of Sri Lanka but also to take India – Sri Lanka relationship to the next level.
Speaking on the occasion, the Deputy High Commissioner noted the enormous interest shown by Sri Lankan officials for the ITEC programme over the years. Deputy High Commissioner highlighted India’s endeavor to help Sri Lanka in the education sector, including in higher education through partnership between higher education institutes in India and Sri Lanka, besides the current 402 ITEC slots annually. Deputy High Commissioner reiterated that India is guided by the philosophy of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ which means ‘the world is one family’ and India would continue to be in the forefront of capacity building programmes for Sri Lanka.
Senior officials reminisced and shared their experiences of ITEC training in India and appreciated the holistic content of the different ITEC programmes such as Gender Responsive Governance, Climate Change Policy Development and Financing for Effective Implementation of SDGs, Integrating Industry Four Dot Zero (4.0) Competency and Twenty First Century Skills in Educational Institutions, and Parliamentary Internship program.
ITEC is a flagship programme of the Government of India launched in September 1964 for extending technical assistance and building capacities of developing countries. It has emerged as an important vehicle for India’s contribution to human resource development of partner countries with over 200,000 persons from 160 fellow developing countries having participated in the programme. Sri Lanka is currently allotted 402 training slots annually for the ITEC programme. ‘ITEC Day’ is celebrated every year by Indian diplomatic Missions all over the world to mark this unique pillar of South-South partnership.
Fitch Ratings – Hong Kong – 28 Sep 2023: FitchRatings has upgraded Sri Lanka’s Long-Term Local-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to ‘CCC-‘ from ‘RD’ (Restricted Default). Fitch typically does not assign Outlooks to sovereigns with a rating of ‘CCC+’ or below. The Long-Term Foreign-Currency IDR has been affirmed at ‘RD’ and the Country Ceiling at ‘B-‘.
The Short-Term Local-Currency IDR has been downgraded to ‘RD’ from ‘C’ following the exchange of treasury bills held by the central bank and subsequently upgraded to ‘C’ in line with the Sovereign Rating Criteria, as we believe the local-currency debt exchange has now been completed.
A full list of rating actions is at the end of this rating action commentary.
Key Rating Drivers
Local-Currency Debt Exchange Completed: The upgrade of Sri Lanka’s Long-Term Local-Currency IDR to ‘CCC-‘ reflects the completion of the local-currency portion of Sri Lanka’s domestic debt optimisation (DDO) plan, launched in July 2023, following the exchange of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka’s (CBSL) treasury bills and provisional advance into new treasury bonds and bills on 21 September 2023.
We assume the debt restructuring will lower Sri Lanka’s gross financing needs over the medium term, in line with the targets under the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility, and support an improvement in the country’s debt metrics over time. Local-currency restructuring could accelerate progress towards the restructuring of external debt.
Government Debt Remains High: General government debt and the interest costs faced by the government will remain high, despite the debt restructuring. Sri Lanka’s gross general government debt-to-GDP ratio is set to fall only gradually to just above 100% of GDP by 2028, from 128% of GDP in 2022, according to IMF programme forecasts published in March 2023, which incorporated a local- and foreign-currency debt restructuring scenario. The IMF scenario forecast the government interest-to- revenue ratio will decline to 42% by 2028, from over 70% in 2022.
Lower Financing Needs: The authorities expect the completion of the local-currency debt exchange to lower Sri Lanka’s gross government financing needs (GFN)/GDP by about 1.5pp over 2027-2032, according to documents published in July. External debt restructuring, which authorities expect to reduce GFN by an additional 2.6pp, remains critical to achieving the target of reducing GFN below 13% by 2027-2032, from 34% in 2022.
Reduction in Terms: The DDO on the local-currency debt entailed an extension of maturities on certain categories of domestic debt and offered several options, including nominal haircuts, currency redenomination and maturity extensions. Outstanding treasury bills purchased by the CBSL in the primary market were converted into 10 step-down fixed-coupon new treasury bonds and 12 existing treasury bills.
Stronger Revenue Generation Key: We believe IMF programme implementation, in particular fiscal measures, will be central to achieving debt sustainability. The risks remain significant, in our view, as a record of weak revenue generation presents challenges to achieving a faster reduction in the budget deficit and the general government debt-to-GDP ratio.
Authorities have taken several tax measures since May 2022 to improve revenue collection, including raising the corporate income tax rate to 30% from 24%, increasing the VAT rate to 15% from 8%, and raising fuel excise taxes. This resulted in revenue collection rising 43% yoy in 1H23. Additional measures in the pipeline include removing product-specific VAT exemptions before 2024 and introducing a property tax before 2025.
External Metrics Improving: Sri Lanka’sforeign-exchange (FX) reserves have been improving, with gross FX reserves rising to USD3.6 billion in August 2023, from USD1.9 billion at end-2022, partly the result of IMF disbursements and suspension of external debt servicing. However, without access to international capital markets, the sovereign remains dependent on official financing sources. We expect a gradual pick-up in exports in 2024-2025 after a contraction in 2023. Overseas worker remittance inflows are also rising. We therefore expect the current account deficit to stabilise at 1.6% of GDP over 2024-2025.
Slow Economic Recovery: GDP contracted by 2.7% yoy in 2Q23, slowing from the 12% contraction in 1Q23. Agriculture and services grew in 2Q23, but industry continued to shrink, although at a slower pace from 1Q23. We expect GDP to contract by 1.4% yoy in 2023 before growing by 3.3% and 3.5% in 2024 and 2025, respectively. Inflation, measured by the Colombo CPI, averaged around 30% yoy until August 2023 but continued the decline from end-2022. The CBSL has cut the standing deposit facility rate by a cumulative 350bp since January 2023. We expect another rate cut before end-2023.
Downside Risks to Banks Easing: The exclusion of banks’ holdings of treasury securities from the DDO has alleviated some of the pressure on their capital positions from weakening loan quality and rupee depreciation as well as any immediate funding and liquidity stresses. We believe any incremental risk to the banks’ capital from foreign-currency debt restructuring is likely to be manageable given their limited exposure to the defaulted sovereign bonds (3.6% of their combined total assets at end-1H23) and high provision coverage.
Foreign-Currency IDR in Default: The sovereign remains in default on foreign-currency obligations and has initiated a debt restructuring with official and private external creditors. The Ministry of Finance’s statement on 12 April 2022 said it had suspended normal debt servicing of several categories of external debt, including bonds issued in international capital markets, foreign currency-denominated loans and credit facilities with commercial banks and institutional lenders.
ESG – Governance: Sri Lanka has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘5’ for Political Stability and Rights as well as for the Rule of Law, Institutional and Regulatory Quality and Control of Corruption. These scores reflect the high weight that the World Bank Governance Indicators (WBGI) have in our proprietary Sovereign Rating Model (SRM). Sri Lanka has a medium WBGI ranking in the 45th percentile, reflecting a recent record of peaceful political transitions, a moderate level of rights for participation in the political process, moderate institutional capacity, established rule of law and a moderate level of corruption.
ESG – Creditor Rights: Sri Lanka has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘5’ for Creditor Rights, as willingness to service and repay debt is highly relevant to the rating and is a key rating driver with a high weight. The affirmation of Sri Lanka’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency IDR at ‘RD’ reflects a default event.
RATING SENSITIVITIES
Factors that Could, Individually or Collectively, Lead to Negative Rating Action/Downgrade
– The Local-Currency IDRs would be downgraded if further restructuring or a default on local-currency debt becomes probable due to an unsustainable debt burden or inability to raise revenue.
– The Long-Term Foreign-Currency IDRs are at the lowest level and cannot be downgraded further.
Factors that Could, Individually or Collectively, Lead to Positive Rating Action/Upgrade
– A sustained decline in the general government debt-to-GDP ratio that is underpinned by strong implementation of a medium-term fiscal consolidation strategy and improved growth performance.
– Completion of the foreign-currency commercial debt restructuring that Fitch judges to have normalised the relationship with private-sector creditors may result in an upgrade.
In accordance with the rating criteria for ratings in the ‘CCC’ range and below, Fitch’s sovereign rating committee has not used the SRM and QO to explain the ratings, which are instead guided by the agency’s rating definitions.
Fitch’s SRM is the agency’s proprietary multiple regression rating model that employs 18 variables based on three-year centred averages, including one year of forecasts, to produce a score equivalent to a LT FC IDR. Fitch’s QO is a forward-looking qualitative framework designed to allow for adjustment to the SRM output to assign the final rating, reflecting factors within our criteria that are not fully quantifiable and/or not fully reflected in the SRM.
Country Ceiling
The Country Ceiling for Sri Lanka is ‘B-‘. For sovereigns rated ‘CCC+’ or below, Fitch assumes a starting point of ‘CCC+’ for determining the Country Ceiling. Fitch’s Country Ceiling Model produced a starting point uplift of zero notches. Fitch’s rating committee applied a +1 notch qualitative adjustment to this, under the balance of payments restrictions pillar, reflecting that the private sector has not been prevented or significantly impeded from converting local currency into foreign currency and transferring the proceeds to non-resident creditors to service debt payments.
Fitch does not assign Country Ceilings below ‘CCC+’, and only assigns a Country Ceiling of ‘CCC+’ in the event that transfer and convertibility risk has materialised and is affecting the vast majority of economic sectors and asset classes.
REFERENCES FOR SUBSTANTIALLY MATERIAL SOURCE CITED AS KEY DRIVER OF RATING
The principal sources of information used in the analysis are described in the Applicable Criteria.
ESG Considerations
Sri Lanka has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘5’ for Political Stability and Rights as WBGI have the highest weight in Fitch’s SRM and are highly relevant to the rating and a key rating driver with a high weight. As Sri Lanka has a percentile rank below 50 for the respective governance indicator, this has a negative impact on the credit profile.
Sri Lanka has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘5’ for Rule of Law, Institutional & Regulatory Quality and Control of Corruption as WBGI have the highest weight in Fitch’s SRM and are therefore highly relevant to the rating and are a key rating driver with a high weight. As Sri Lanka has a percentile rank below 50 for the respective governance indicators, this has a negative impact on the credit profile.
Sri Lanka has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘4’ for Human Rights and Political Freedoms, as the Voice and Accountability pillar of the WBGI is relevant to the rating and a rating driver. As Sri Lanka has a percentile rank below 50 for the respective governance indicator, this has a negative impact on the credit profile.
Sri Lanka has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘5’ for Creditor Rights as willingness to service and repay debt is highly relevant to the rating and is a key rating driver with a high weight. Sri Lanka’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency IDR is ‘RD’ as the sovereign is in default on its foreign-currency debt obligations.
The highest level of ESG credit relevance is a score of ‘3’, unless otherwise disclosed in this section. A score of ‘3’ means ESG issues are credit-neutral or have only a minimal credit impact on the entity, either due to their nature or the way in which they are being managed by the entity. Fitch’s ESG Relevance Scores are not inputs in the rating process; they are an observation on the relevance and materiality of ESG factors in the rating decision. For more information on Fitch’s ESG Relevance Scores, visit www.fitchratings.com/topics/esg/products#esg-relevance-scores.
