Distribution of imported fertilizer begins
Stocks of imported fertilizer loaded in Lorries to leave Colombo for Agrarin centers countrywide. Pic by Pradeep Pathirana
Three Ministry Secretaries assigned to approve agro chemical imports
The government has appointed a top-level committee of ministry secretaries to take over the task of approving agro chemical imports, taking over this task which is normally assigned to the Registrar of Pesticides, in a bid to ease restrictions and in a response to mounting protests by farmers demanding fertiliser and pesticides. In pursuit of [...]
Sri Lanka’s Hela Clothing to strike global partnerships
Sri Lankan apparel maker Hela Clothing, pitching to trade 20 per cent in the company for a multi-billion public equity share, is upbeat on striking international strategic partnerships to better manage their supply chains for future growth. Dilanka Jinadasa, CEO Hela Clothing (Pvt) Ltd in an interview with the Business Times said the company has [...]
Hotels want dollars from November 1
Sri Lanka’s tour operators were all fired up when they knew time was running out on a circular sent out by hoteliers insisting that payments be made in dollars starting November 1. Lawyers representing the Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO) stated in a letter addressed to The Hotels Association of Sri Lanka [...]
Chinese embassy plays hardball over payments for contaminated fertilizer
The Chinese embassy in Colombo which earlier went public calling for international inspection of a shipment of contaminated fertilizer from China Friday went a step further by blacklisting the state owned People’s Bank over failure to honour payments for the shipment. “This could impact other state banks similarly and the smaller private banks,” an analyst [...]
National Identity Card tender takes a wrong turn
The Department for Registration of Persons will be continuing with the Preprinted Polycarbonate National Identity Cards (NIC) until new biometric NICs applicable to the whole population are ready for issuance. A procurement committee has selected a prospective company to print and supply one million Preprinted Polycarbonate Cards after a proper evaluation of bids, department sources [...]
Switching mobile connections
I had woken up early on Thursday morning and was wondering what to write about this week. At this point the phone rang. It was ‘Hingga’ Pala, a name given to my friend Siripala, a beggarly character who always asks for money, even though he has enough resources. ‘Hingga Pala’ was in fact the name [...]
Removal of price controls
Priyanga who is in his fifties, has some knowledge about selecting food and other consumables in good quality. He and his wife are both always careful about what they purchase for the family with three children. He is also brand-conscious; he knows the brand names of the producers and suppliers who are keen in protecting [...]
Fertiliser fix digs deeper
Sri Lanka’s fertiliser problems are deeply rooted in a stock of fertiliser tainted with microorganisms said to be waiting until tests of another batch of fertiliser sampl is carred out. There is no provision from the Plant Protection Act to go for the same test from the same batch of fertiliser because approval has not [...]
CSE: A fool born every second
Today’s stock market is a true reflection of the weakness in the Sri Lankan economy, analysts said noting that it amply shows the lack of proper investments and confidence in the economy. The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) is up 50 per cent so far this year and plenty of young people are buying and ‘jumping’ [...]
HJS Condiments expands out-grower network
HJS Condiments Ltd, a subsidiary of Hayleys Agriculture Holdings Ltd, has extended its out-grower network to several new districts, including Badulla, Ampara, Vavuniya, Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu. Hayleys Agriculture Holdings Limited is a fully owned subsidiary of the diversified conglomerate Hayleys PLC. The company, in a media release, said it has worked to improve the livelihoods [...]
Plantation industries face uncertain future
Sri Lanka’s current debate over the agrochemical use and shifting towards organic farming has become a growing concern among the plantations sector as crop protection using pesticides and herbicides are in short supply raising issues relating to the future of key foreign exchange generating sectors like tea and rubber. Elpitiya Plantations PLC COO Geethkumara Dayananda [...]
Sri Lanka to host World HR Congress 2021 from Dec. 6-8
Sri Lanka will host the 18th the World HR International Conference in December as a virtual event giving a tremendous boost to showcase the country’s potential talent pool following the COVID-19 pandemic, said Jayantha Amarasinghe, President, CIPM Sri Lanka at a media briefing held at the CIPM Head Office in Colombo last week. He said [...]
The inflation catch-up game
CAMBRIDGE – Inflation is now on the front page of newspapers around the world, and for good reason. Prices of more and more goods and services are increasing in a manner not seen for decades. This inflationary spike, accompanied by actual and feared supply shortages, is fueling both consumer and producer anxiety. By also threatening [...]
MAGA to design and build new Faculty of Technology at the Rajarata University
MAGA has been awarded the contract for the design and construction of a Faculty of Technology at the Rajarata University of Sri Lanka (RUSL) in Mihintale, Anuradhapura. The new faculty valued at approximately Rs. 3 billion will be developed on a 2-acre land and feature an 800-seat capacity auditorium, a large 3-storey library, multiple lecture [...]
Rs.12.8 b proposal from Poland for organic fertiliser production in Sri Lanka
The Colombo Commercial Fertilizers Ltd (CCFL) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Polish venture capital firm Regina Purpurea Fundus (RPF) this week, to establish preliminary parameters to form a joint venture for an organic fertiliser manufacturing operation in Sri Lanka. The statement from CCFL said that RPF intends to design, finance, build [...]
Jason Avanceña, new MD at Nestlé Lanka PLC
Jason Avanceña has been appointed Managing Director of Nestlé Lanka PLC with effect from October 1, 2021 and will lead Nestlé’s operations in Sri Lanka and the Maldives. He takes over from former Managing Director, Fabrice Cavallin, who moved to Switzerland as part of the regional management team for Asia, Oceania and Africa (AOA), overseeing [...]
Two SLPA lands for mixed development in a quest for dollars
The government is going ahead with the long term leasing of state lands in Colombo for mixed development projects in public private partnerships in an apparent bid to attract foreign direct investment at a time of drying up of dollar reserves. The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is spearheading this real estate development initiative making [...]
ADB not supporting coal power projects anymore
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) plans to fund several South East Asian and Central Asian countries to move towards greener energy. Under the energy policy, the ADB has strong interventions in India with US$200 million dollars in energy projects supporting solar television, smart vehicles, electrical vehicles and battery storage and other devices that will have [...]
Mobitel’s soon-to-be constructed new headquarters at Welikada
Mobitel recently laid the foundation stone for its technologically advanced new headquarters building in Welikada. The property is SLT-MOBITEL’s first state-of-the-art green building which will comprise the latest aesthetics and technologically advanced features. The foundation stone for the new building was laid with the participation of Rohan Fernando, Group Chairman, SLT; Lalith Seneviratne, Group Chief [...]
Budget 2022 introduces far reaching changes for fiscal sustainability
The Finance Ministry is nearing finalising Budget 2022 without burdening the working class and the poor in an effort to gain fiscal and debt sustainability, uplifting the living standard of the middle class. The highlight will be the restructuring of the power, water and petroleum sectors with moves to curtail subsidies and price revisions, ministry [...]
Sri Lanka to spend over Rs. 220 b in costly shift to organic farming
The government’s ill-timed move of shifting to fully organic farming has triggered a massive economic loss for the country endangering crop yield during the present” Maha’ season. The total cost incurred during the implementation of organic agriculture is estimated at around Rs. 222.6 billion, Finance Ministry provisional estimates and mathematical model computations revealed. The root [...]
Seek IMF help and float the dollar, professional group urges
A group of concerned Sri Lankan professionals has urged the government to seek IMF help to stave off the foreign exchange crisis and to allow the US dollar to settle at market-demanded rates, instead of a managed float. The move however, according to economists, is unlikely to garner the government’s attention as its hierarchy, in [...]
Ending hunger sustainably
ROME – In 2015, 193 countries gathered at the United Nations and pledged to end global hunger by 2030 as part of the Agenda for Sustainable Development. With less than a decade to go, prospects for achieving this goal appear bleak. Improving them will require governments and the private sector to address the global food [...]
Government initiates anticorruption drive in state institutions
The Government is moving to strengthen accountability in state institutions especially in revenue collection agencies by launching an anticorruption and fraud prevention drive. These functions will be initiated by the Finance Ministry to prevent conflict of interest; assets declaration by public officials, verification of submitted information and public access to declarations. The aim is to [...]
Sri Lanka’s first Lifestyle BOGO Coupons App
Turaballys, one of Sri Lanka’s leading trade partnerships, recently launched the SLASH app – their flagship app for Sri Lankans to experience more of what they love while saving money. The app is available on the App Store and Play Store, it allows you to source buy-one-get-one offers from lifestyle experiences across the island. “At [...]
LSEG Foundation extends COVID-19 support with essential medical equipment
LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) Foundation has donated medical equipment valued at approximately Rs.18 million (GBP 63,500) to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Sri Lanka. Facilitated by UNICEF Sri Lanka, the funds were utilised to procure and supply oxygen-related equipment and supplies such as oxygen concentrators, oxygen cylinders and high-flow oxygen units to hospitals [...]
Tokyo Cement ramps up supply to meet cement shortage
Tokyo Cement is stepping up cement production to meet a current shortage, operating its cement manufacturing plant in Trincomalee at the maximum installed capacity of around 170,000 MT per month but attributes several reasons including the long delay in opening LCs as part of the problem. In a statement, Dr. Harsha Cabral PC, Chairman of [...]