SRI LANKA NEWS IN BRIEF (JANUARY 2018) Compiled by Victor Melder

It has been estimated that four kilos of heroin are consumed daily by 45,000 addicts in Sri Lanka. Dangerous Drugs Control Board (DDCB) Chairman Prof. Ravindra Fernando made this revelation during a media conference at the DDCB auditorium. Prof. Fernando said the addicts consumed an estimated 1,478 kilos of heroin annually. Heroin is mostly smuggled into the country in Indian and Pakistani fishing vessels. Cannabis is illegally grown in an estimated 500 ha in the Eastern, Uva and Southern provinces of Sri Lanka, according to the DDCB. Prof. Fernando said a special programme to eradicate drug menace by 2020 was being formulated by the government with the cooperation of the police, DDCB, the Excise Department, the Department of Prisons, the Sri Lanka Customs, the Coastal Protection Authority and the armed forces. (Daily Island, 2.1.2018)

The National Hospital  said there had been 512 incidents including road traffic mishaps and firecracker related incidents on 30 and 31 of December. National Coordinator (Training) at the National Hospital Pushpa Ramyani de Zoysa said that last year a total of 479 incidents including RTA had occurred. Of those injured, 194 had been admitted to hospital, she said, adding that 117 of them had been road accident victims. In 2016 there were 113 victims of road accidents. The number of domestic accidents recorded in 2017 was 68. There were 43 domestic accidents during the last two days of 2016. The National Coordinator Training said that 161 persons had fallen and injured themselves on Dec. 31. There was a drop in the number of firecracker injuries. The incidents of violence too showed a 12 percent decrease. In 2016, there were 48 cases of violence while in 2017, the number had dropped to 42, she added.  (Daily Island, 2.1.2018).

In a report by the National Venereal Diseases and Prevention of AIDS project it is stated that there are 7500 persons identified as gays in Sri Lanka. Blood samples of about 1.2 million suspected persons had been examined and 280 persons among them had been identified as victims of AIDS, stated the Director of National Venereal Diseases and Prevention of AIDS Dr Sisira Liyanage. Among this group there had been Women, Men and Children as victims and a majority had been Gay persons, Dr Liyanage states further. He also said in engaging sex without using condoms had been the main cause of the spread of Venereal Diseases, and they had also detected patients suffering from Syphilis and Gonorrhea during their examinations. The report also indicated that a large number of patients suffering from AIDS and Venereal Diseases were found in Colombo, Gampaha, Galle, Kalutara and Kurunegala Districts (Daily Mirror, 4.1.2018)

The downtrend inflation trend was in line with FC Research’s forecasted direction of the movement of CCPI while December 2017 actual inflation was slightly below FC Research forecast of 7.2% by 10 bps. December MoM and YoY inflation was driven by Food category (+14.4%YoY) Core inflation for Dec 2017 further dipped to 4.3%YoY, below 5% mark since July 2017 80% of the MoM increase in December was explained by Food category (+1.3% MoM) driven by supply shortfalls in vegetables. The increase was further supported by the higher demand for food items during the festive month  Food category (+14.4% YoY) also drives YoY inflation in December. Shortfalls in vegetables continued to drive food inflation in December. The main drivers of vegetable prices was the supply shortfall continued from adverse weather. Chicken prices were driven by the higher demand in the festive month while increase in coconut prices have relaxed from last month. Expenditure on Non Food category increased only 0.2%MoM in Dec 2017, down from 0.9%MoM in Nov 2017 driven by Transport. Airline charges drove December Transport expenses.  (Daily Island, 5.1.2018)

Despite a tough year, tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka reached an all-time high of 2,116,407 in 2017 according to the latest data released by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), but recorded marginal growth of 3.2% after adverse weather, dengue and a partially closed airport earlier in the year hampered growth.  The arrival figure for 2017 represents a 3.2% growth or 65,595 more arrivals over the preceding year when the figure crossed the 2 million mark for the first time. The higher number of arrivals has been achieved despite serious setbacks to the tourism industry right throughout 2017. The first setback was the partial closure of the country’s main airport from January to April resulting in many airlines either scaling down operations or completely halting flights to Colombo. Just weeks after the airport reopened in April, the southern half of the country experienced devastating floods that cut off access to many resort areas resulting in adverse international media publicity that had an impact on forward bookings. This was followed by an unprecedented dengue epidemic centered around the commercial capital Colombo that lasted several months, which too resulted in negative reports on international media resulting in at least one country issuing a travel advisory based on the issue.  Further flooding and a severe drought in the central and northern parts of the country in the latter part of the year added to the climatic woes suffered by the tourism industry during the year which according to industry sources impacted forward bookings. According to SLTDA data, arrivals in December grew from 224,791 in 2016 to 244,536 in 2017 reflecting an 8.8% growth rate which augurs well for the winter season ahead. India continued to be the top source market with 384,628 arrivals (up 7.8%) followed by China with 268,952 (down 1%) and UK 201,879 (up 7.3%). Of the total number of arrivals 2,085,272 reached the country via BIA in Katunayake, 5,491 via MRIA in Mattala, 10,569, via Colombo Harbour, 14,099 via Galle Harbour and 976 via other ports according to statistics from the Department of Immigration and Emigration (Daily Financial Times, 6.1.2018)

Sri Lanka had an extraordinary year with prices for Ceylon Tea climbing significantly above the rest of the world, John Keells PLC Brokers said in its report commenting on price performances in 2017. January to December 2017 National Average was Rs. 618.14 per kilo compared with Rs. 468.61 — around 13 percent more than the price fetched in 2016. “There was a commendable increase in prices during 2017”, the report said. The highest gain was from Western High Growns selling at about 14 percent above the market average. Colombo Tea Auctions 2018 did get off to a ‘not too bad’ price average, a brokering source said, but in comparison with 2017, the market declined. This week’s auction experienced declining western prices by as much as Rs. 20 to 30 per kilo. It was also reported some invoices remained unsold. The opening auction quantity for season 2018 totaled 5.9 million kilos. Ex-estate offerings met with less demand. Turkey, Russia and CIS Countries were active, while Iraq and Libya lent excellent support, the report said. (Sunday Island, 7.1.2018)

Thirteen supporters of Sri Lanka’s now defunct terrorist group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), in Switzerland will stand trial before the Swiss Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona for providing financial support to the organisation through a sophisticated microcredit system. The accused from Switzerland, Germany and Sri Lanka are charged with funneling more than $15.3 million to the terrorist organisation. Some of the accused are former members of the World Tamil Coordinating Committee (WTCC), which represented the LTTE in Switzerland until 2009, and include its founder, his deputy and the person in charge of finances, a Swissinfo report said. The 13 on trial face charges of fraud, false documentation, money laundering and extortion. As the LTTE was never declared a terror organisation in Switzerland, they will not face charges of funding a terror group, unlike cases involving Islamic State or al-Qaeda. The Swiss funds were transported in cash by couriers to Singapore and Dubai, eventually reaching the LTTE in Sri Lanka who allegedly used the money to purchase arms. This funding system collapsed in 2009 after the LTTE’s military defeat at the hands of the Sri Lankan armed forces. “Around 80% of Tamils living in Switzerland had made payments to support LTTE at the time to support the struggle against genocide. That does not make Tamils supporters of terrorism,” Former President of the Swiss Council of Eelam Tamils Kuruparan Kurusamy said. According to Kurusamy, the bank in question was Credit Suisse and he claims it had accepted 135 loans under the name of one Sri Lankan national based in Germany. Around 50,000 people from Sri Lanka live in Switzerland, mostly ethnic Tamils, who fled the island’s 30-year civil war that ended in 2009. Many applied for Swiss citizenship and as of 2016 there were slightly more than 28,000 people with Sri Lankan citizenship residing in Switzerland. In 2016, the Swiss Government announced it would apply more stringent criteria for granting Sri Lankan nationals refugee status. (Daily Financial Times, 6.1.2018)

The undue profits amounting to a staggering Rs. 11 billion for the period February 2015 to March 2016, as calculated by the Presidential Commission on the Bond issuance, is recoverable from Perpetual Treasuries Limited (PTL), Central Bank (CB) Governor Dr. Indrajith Coomaraswamy told the Sunday Observer. According to the Governor, the Central Bank took steps immediately following investigations, to freeze bank accounts that were held by Perpetual Treasuries. “The company bank accounts have been suspended and their activities stopped so they are unable to take any money out. The Attorney General’s Department would have to lodge a civil recovery case to recover the money, the Governor said. The Presidential Commission which was mandated to look into the Bond issuance during 2015–2016, calculated that PTL has made an undue profit of about Rs. 11 billion. “As revealed during the investigations, Perpetual Treasuries Limited has made an undue profit of Rs. 11,145 million in the secondary market. In this, the Employees Provident Fund and other government institutions had lost more than Rs. 8,524 million or Rs. 8.5 billion,” the President’s statement on the Commission report revealed. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, meanwhile met with the governor and officials of the Central Bank to push forward the recommendations made in the Commission report, specially the recommendations to be adopted by the Central Bank. Governor, Dr. Coomaraswamy said after the Commission Reports are made available to them they will see how best to go about adopting the recommendations quickly. (Sunday Observer, 7.1.2018)

Due to efficient management of state revenue and expenditure, the government has been able to achieve Rs 21.9 billion surplus in the primary balance of the fiscal accounts during the first ten months of the year 2017 which is for the first time in the last 63 years. In the post independent Sri Lankan history a surplus in the budget deficit was first recorded by 0.5 percent of the GDP in the year 1954. Later in 1956 this budget surplus had increased to 2.2 percent of the GDP. In the meantime the surplus in the current account was registered from 1950 to 1970 and later from 1973 to 1994. Since then up to now overall budget deficit, deficit in the current account and the deficit in the primary balance were in negative growth continuously. During the first ten months of the year 2017, the surplus in the budget primary balance was Rs 21.9 billion. It was in negative by Rs 37 billion during the corresponding period of 2016. The Treasury officials are in the opinion that the favourable situation in the primary balance is a sign of positive growth in the economic development and it would further enhance the capacity to manage the debt repayment efficiently. Having an excess in the state revenue more than the whole state expenditure minus the interest payment is known as the surplus in primary balance. The state revenue when compared with the first ten months of 2016 has increased by 10.4 percent to Rs 1473 billion in 2017. It was Rs 1333 billion during the same period in 2016. The Tax revenue during the same period has increased by 14.2 percent to Rs 1470 billion in 2017. (Daily Island, 9.1.2018)

The Government’s excise earnings from tobacco dipped by Rs. 2.7 billion in 2017, ending a prolific run of growth. 
Reports from the Department of Excise point to a revenue drop of 3.1% last year to Rs. 86 billion, over the figure of Rs. 88.7 billion in 2016. State earnings from the Ceylon Tobacco Company grew a mammoth 37.5% in 2015 when revenue grew by Rs. 21.5 billion, followed by growth of 12.46% in 2016. Company sources attribute the reduction in government revenue to the unprecedented 40% drop in volumes last year, following the sharp increase in prices during the last quarter of 2016.  In October 2016, the then Minister of Finance slapped a 43% increase on the price of a stick, significantly impacting sales. It adds that the drop in the sale of legal cigarettes due to the high price was compensated by smuggled illicit products entering the market; estimating that over 500 million illicit sticks entered Sri Lanka in 2017 amounting to a loss of over Rs. 20 billion to the Government. 
Government excise earnings from tobacco was just Rs. 57 billion in 2014 before it peaked at Rs. 88.7 billion in 2016. At pre-October 2016 prices the Government would have earned a record Rs. 105 billion from CTC during the year that ended, officials say.  To combat the smuggling of illicit cigarettes, during the 2018 Budget presentation, the Government proposed to issue new licences to import cigarettes whilst clamping down on smuggling. (Daily Financial Times, 9.1.2018).

Fulfilling a long felt need of the people in the dry-zone, the giant Moragahakanda Reservoir, a multipurpose development project under the Moragahakanda – Kaluganga Reservoir Development Project was commissioned under the patronage of President Maithripala Sirisena and with the participation of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe , amidst the blessings and the chanting of Seth Pirith of the Maha Sangha. With the commissioning of the project the waters of the Moragahakanda reservoir will nourish and make fertile thousands of hectares of barren lands and bring them under the plough while providing drinking water to quench the thirst of millions of people, who are affected with the scarcity of pure drinking water facilities for decades. Sri Lanka, considered primarily as an agricultural nation, marked a significant milestone yesterday when the waters of the last but the biggest reservoir of the multipurpose Mahaweli Scheme at Moragahakanda had it’s sluice gates opened to irrigate parched dry lands in faraway Vanni in the Northern Province on the one side and Rajarata, Wayamba, Central and Eastern Provinces on the other. The commencement of filling water to the Moragahakanda reservoir started on January 11 last year by President Sirisena giving a pledge that the project would be commissioned by the following January. With the commissioning of the Moragahakanda reservoir, an additional 64,000,000 cubic metres of water will flow from the reservoir to far flung regions. The Moragahakanda project completed at Rs 180,000 million will end the water scarcity in several districts mainly in Matale, Polonnaruwa, Vavuniya, Anuradhapura, Trincomalee and the Vanni. Besides, the water will add 25 MW to the national grid through four turbines installed in the main dam of the reservoir. The Moragahakanda Dam is a high-gravity dam with a height of 65 metres. The dam has created the Moragahakanda Reservoir, which has an active storage capacity of 521,000,000 cubic meters, and is four times bigger than the gigantic Parakrama Samudraya in Polonnaruwa. Two additional embankment saddle dams have been built to contain the Moragahakanda Reservoir. The Kalu Ganga Reservoir project, which has completed 70 percent construction, will link the Moragahakanda Reservoir via a tunnel. Water from both, the Moragahakanda and Kalu Ganga Reservoirs, will be primarily used to support agricultural needs in an area of at least 81,422 hectares. This would increase rice production by 81 per cent or in other words it would increase the paddy production by 109,000 tons annually, amounting to an estimated monetary benefit of US$1.67 million, per year. The project consists of two irrigation channel systems as the Rajarata channel system and the Wayamba Channel system. The Rajarata channel system is 102 km long and connects the Mahakanadarawa Tank via Huruluwewa. The 96 km long Wayamba Channel system completed at a cost of US$ 200 million provides water to Wayamba, Both channel systems will supply water to 1,500 small tanks in the dry zone. The two channel systems will help cultivate around 94,000 hectares of paddy land throughout the year allowing paddy farmers to cultivate both, the Yala and Maha seasons. (Daily News 9.1..2018.)

In its 2017 annual report the Prisons Department reveals that there are 1,523 prisoners who have never attended school while 55 are graduates. There are 6,879 prisoners who have studied only up to the fifth Grade while 5,894 have passed Grade Five and 6,129 have passed Grade Eight. Those who have passed the GCE Ordinary Level Examination number 2,643, while 909 prisoners have passed the GCE Advanced Level Examination. The report reveals that a total of 24,060 prisoners are being held in 25 prisoners including Welikada, Bogambara and Mahara. (Daily Island, 12.1.2018).

An agreement for Indian financial assistance for US $ 45.27 million (LKR 6.9 billion) for upgrading Kankesanthurai (KKS) Harbour was signed on 10 January 2018 in New Delhi by Mr. David Rasquinha, Managing Director, Export-Import Bank of India and Dr. R.H.S Samaratunga, Secretary to Treasury of Sri Lanka. Senior officials from the governments of India and Sri Lanka were also present.  According to a statement released by the Indian High Commission, the upgradation project would make KKS Harbour a full-fledged commercial port, further strengthening Sri Lanka’s efforts to become a regional maritime hub. It would also assist in reconstruction efforts in northern Sri Lanka. It may be recalled that there exists an MoU between India and Sri Lanka for rehabilitation of KKS Harbour. Four out of the six phases of the rehabilitation have already been completed under India’s grant assistance. This includes preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR), works related to Geo-technical studies, wreck removal and disposal, dredging and hydrographic survey. The fresh assistance of US $ 45.27 million (LKR 6.9 billion) would be used for the remaining two phases involving works relating to the rehabilitation of the breakwater and existing pier, construction of a new pier for commercial cargo handling,  installation of port infrastructure facilities, etc. The signing of the MoU is a reflection of the continued commitment of Government of India to assist Sri Lanka in its development journey. (Daily Financial Times, 12.1.2018).

The number of grave crimes reported last year has plummeted by 14,991 when compared with 2014, said Law and Order Minister Sagala Ratnayake. He told a public meeting on Wednesday at Kirulapone that 35,971 grave crimes were reported last year and that 28,002 or 78% of them were solved. The minister said 50,962 grave crimes had been reported in 2014 with only 29,396 or 58% of them being solved. “Among the reported crimes, 96% cases of physical abuse, 73% property offences and 93% cases of murder were solved. Also, 97% of underage abuse cases, which had taken place with the consent of the victim, were solved while another 95% that taken place without the consent of the victims was solved last year. “As a whole, the police have been able to solve more than 95% of women rape incidents, over 97% of child abuse cases and 91% of child abduction cases. While 95% of the riots had been solved last year and this is a 22% increase compared to 2014,” he said. (Daily Mirror 12.1.2018)

Every two years the Primate Specialist Group(PSG) of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) publishes a list of the 25 most endangered primates in the World. Since 2004 the list has regularly included Sri Lanka’s Batahira Kalu Wandura or the Western purple-faced Langur. In December 2017 however, the Highland Bear Monkey, and the Northern and Southern purple-faced langurs were also added to the list. The PSG’s recommendation was based mainly on systematic field surveys conducted to estimate the size of monkey populations and the natural habitats available to them in different parts of Sri Lanka. The surveys within the range of the Highland Bear monkey and the Western- and Southern- purple-faced langur were conducted by affiliates of the SPEARS Foundation, a local not for profit organization. Information about the status of the Northern purple-faced langur was obtained mainly from presentations at the Asian Primate Symposium conducted in October 2016 in Colombo. Protecting all four subspecies from the threat of extinction requires that activities dealing with their conservation be conducted over a much larger area of the island than before. Conservation activities over a larger area will also be beneficial for the protection of the endangered Toque Macaque, the Grey Langur, the nocturnal prosimians, and many other wildlife species. With this objective in mind the SPEARS Foundation collaborated with the Department of Wildlife Conservation to develop an Action Plan that used Sri Lanka’s monkeys as the flagship species to protect many other taxa. The Action Plan was submitted to the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Wildlife in May 2016, and several of its elements are now being implemented. (Sunday Island, 14.1.2018)

The “Shiva Sunbeam” (Curetis siva), a butterfly species hitherto unrecorded in Sri Lanka but found in India, has been recently discovered by our butterfly expert Dr. Michael van der Poorten. Although earlier misidentified as a seasonal form of another butterfly, the “Indian Sunbeam” (Curetis thetis), Dr. van der Poorten has now confirmed the existence of the species, “Shiva Sunbeam” (Curetis siva), in Sri Lanka as well. The adult butterfly can be seen flitting through the canopy of trees in the wet zone forests and is generally encountered around “Nadun” trees which is one of its larval food plants. The males occasionally settle on moist soil, much to the delight of a photographer. This brings the total number of butterfly species thus far recorded in Sri Lanka to 248, of which 31 are endemic. In 2016, Dr van der Poorten and his wife Nancy published their landmark , Butterfly Fauna of Sri Lanka, ,wherein they documented the habitats, distribution and adult behaviour of all 247 species in the island at the time. Dr. van der Poorten, with over 40 years of experience as a Lepidopteristin in Sri Lanka and Canada, also discovered a new butterfly in Sri Lanka in 2008, Catopsilia scylla, which is native to Australia, Singapore and Malaysia. In addition, he is credited for discovering the butterflyCephrenes trichopepla, also a native of Australia, in the same year. Both butterflies are now quite widespread across the country. (Sunday Island, 14.1.2018)

A new passport to be issued this year will contain a microchip which could store personal details including biometrics of the holder, the Immigration Department said. Immigration and Emigration Controller General S. Ranasinghe said. The new passport would have additional security features to minimise chances of anyone making forged passports. He said the introduction of the microchip would also provide an advantage to the holder. In the event of the loss of the document, the holder could obtain a new document easily as the personal details including the fingerprints were stored. Mr. Ranasinghe said the passport would also have better international recognition in view of the additional security features. The passport would be valid for 10 years. The Controller General said that persons obtaining new passports would be issued with the new document while those holding the current passports could use them until the validity ended. (Sunday Times, 14.1.2018)

The Supreme Court has informed President Maithripala Sirisena that his term of office is five years, the President’s Media Division says. On reference made by President Maithripala Sirisena, Chief Justice Priyasath Dep appointed a five-judge bench on January 10, to decide whether the President’s term is five or six years. The Supreme Court held an open court hearing to decide whether the President’s term is five or six years on January 11. The matter was taken up before a five-judge-bench comprising Chief Justice Priyasath Dep, Justice Eva Wanasundara, Justice Buwaneka Aluvihare, Justice Sisira de Abrew and Justice K.T. Chitrasiri. (Daily Island, 16.1.2018)

The estimated economically active population is about 8.5 million in the third quarter 2017, according to the Sri Lanka Labour Force Survey (LFS) of the Department of Census and Statistics. “63.1 percent of this number are males and 36.9 percent are females. Meanwhile, the economically inactive population is about 7.3 million. Out of the economically inactive population 26.2 percent are males and 73.8 percent are females. LFS is designed to measure the levels and trends of employment, unemployment and labour force in Sri Lanka. It has been conducted quarterly, since the first quarter of 1990. (Daily Island, 16.1.2018).

The National Council for Road Safety (NCRS) said a minimum of ten people were killed due to road accidents daily while 20 were rendered disabled by them.  NCRS Coordinator, G.A. Buddhika Prabath said last year (from January to December) 2910 fatal accidents had occurred causing 3,078 deaths. Of them 935 were pedestrians, 998 motorcyclists, 187 were pillion riders, 239 motorists, 423 passengers, and 289 cyclists. There were seven others killed on roads due to various other reasons.  A majority of those who died or crippled were low income earners. They were also the breadwinners of their families. He said according to NCRS Chairman the main reason for road traffic accidents were reckless overtaking, speeding, disregarding road signs or being unaware of them. This had led to a drastic increase in casualties amongst motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians. The NCRS Coordinator said the NCRS had initiated a programme at the provincial level to raise awareness amongst motorcyclists and civilians of road safety. (Daily Island, 19.1.2018)

Sri Lankan merchandise exports grew to an all time record of over US$11.4bn in 2017, surpassing the previous high of US$11.1bn achieved in 2014. Once, again the EU and the USA were our biggest markets taking ~US$3bn each. The sectors showing particularly strong year-on-year growth were tea ~20% and fisheries ~40%. Tea benefited from higher prices and enhanced access to Middle Eastern markets, particularly, Iran. Fisheries benefited from both the lifting of the EU ban in June 2016 and the GSP+ concession in May 2017. the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade said. Apparel which accounts for over 40% of all goods exports and employs over 300,000 people directly, mostly women, recorded a modest 2% growth over 2016. However it is encouraging that the past four months showed ~10% year-on-year growth as new orders from the EU were secured due to the GSP+ benefit of 12% duty exemption. 2018 is expected to be a strong year for the apparel manufacturers. Services exports comprising ICT/BPM, logistics, financial services and construction contributed an additional $3.7bn of exports, an increase of 8% compared to 2016. The growth in services in 2017 was significant compared to the year 2016 where ICT/BPM grew at 7.7% and logistics at 5%. (Sunday Island, 21.1.2018)

With the Government debt level in excess of Rs. 9,387 billion, a new Active Liability Management Law is to be enacted to make provision to raise loans, in and outside Sri Lanka, to manage public debt. The objective is also to ensure that the financing needs and payment obligations of the Government are met at the lowest possible cost over the medium to long term, consistent with a prudent degree of risk. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is also the Minister of National Policies and Economic Affairs, in a Cabinet memorandum said the debt sustainability had become a national concern as it was 76 percent of the Government revenue for 2016. Although, the Government has not defaulted in the repayment of debt any time before, it has to adopt appropriate debt reform methods to prevent any potential future risk, he said. The new law will allow Parliament, by resolution, to give approval to raise money during a particular financial year. But the amount should not exceed ten percent of the total outstanding debt as at the end of the preceding financial year. This loan will be raised in terms of the relevant laws including the provisions of the Monetary Law Act, the Local Treasury Bills Ordinance, the Registered Stocks and Securities Ordinance and the Foreign Loans Act, for the purposes of refinancing and pre-financing of public debts of the Government. The Bill will be presented to Parliament shortly. Meanwhile, the Government has been asked to pay Rs. 14 billion as insurance premium to a Japanese bank to qualify for a loan to build the Pothuhera-Galagedera stretch of the proposed Central Expressway.  The amount has been assessed after Sri Lanka’s loan repayment capacity was taken into consideration. (Sunday Times, 21.1.2018)

The Survey Department is in the process of standardizing geographical names in Sinhala and Tamil and will romanize Sinhala geographical names. Senior Deputy Surveyor General, D. N. D. Hettiarachchi said. This is in addition to introducing the revised version of the 1:50,000 scale map. The Department is currently in the process of standardizing geographical names in both Tamil and Sinhala. Standardization of geographical names was encouraged in all countries by the UN in 1960. Under the standardization process place names as well as those of geographical features such as names of rivers and mountains will be standardized. Sri Lanka commenced the standardization process in 2015. “We have already collected the geographical names,” informed Hettiarachchi.  A Cabinet appointed committee consisting of academics and representatives of various organizations will finalize the names. These names will be publicized in a website by the end of this month, for public comments. After consideration of public comments, the names will be republished in both Sinhala and Tamil, by the end of the year. “The committee will not assign new names,” emphasised Hettiarachchi. ” It will merely decide which of the already existing names are suitable for any one geographical location.” For geographical locations with two names in both Sinhala and Tamil languages, both names will be introduced. He further explained that documents in Sinhala will be able to use the Sinhala version of a place name and Tamil documents the Tamil name. Hettiarachchi informed that Sinhala geographical names will also be standardized. “Without standardization different people spell names of places differently, leading to confusion. For example ‘Matugama’ is also spelled ‘Mathugama’. After standardization there shall be no deviation from the accepted spelling and therefore no confusion.” The process, referred to as the romanization, undertaken by the same committee will ensure that the spelling will convey correct Sinhala pronunciation. India had already introduced the romanization method for the Tamil language, which had been accepted by the UN. The draft of Sinhala romanization has already been sent to Sri Lanka Standards Institution for observations. “Once it is accepted it will be published and all maps of Sri Lanka in English will bear the romanized place names.” The set target for romanization of Sinhala geographical names is the end of the year. The Department is also currently revising the 1:50,000 series. In this series one centimetre on the 1:50,000 map equals 50,000 centimetres (or 500 metres) on the ground and the whole country is covered in 92 sections, each depicting a 1,000 square kilometres in real land extent. Of the 92, the Survey Department has completed 60 and the remainder will be completed by the end of the year. “The last 1:50,000 series was issued 15 years ago and had not been updated since. The country has undergone many changes since, such as land expansion due to mega development projects within the last 18 years. Land reclamation for Colombo Port City added 2.6 square kilometres to the Sri Lankan land mass,” said Hettiarachchi. The new map series will include the new Port City, Expressways and Hambantota Port. (Daily Island, 24.1.2018).

President Maithripala Sirisena   said parliament as an institution wasn’t corrupt though some of its members were. He alleged that corrupt parliamentarians representing major political parties had sunk their differences to form what he called a new unholy alliance to derail the ongoing high profile corruption cases. President Sirisena accused the group of working in unison to block judicial investigations on the basis of PRECIFAC (Presidential Commission of Inquiry to investigate and inquire into Serious Acts of Fraud, Corruption and Abuse of Power, State Resources and Privileges) revelations and the Bond Commission. The President said so when The Island asked him wasn’t he, too, directly responsible for the situation in parliament in addition to the absence of proper auditing mechanism in the public sector by inordinate delay in introducing the much touted National Audit Bill. President Sirisena was told that the inordinate delay on the part of the parliament to enact vital legislation should be examined against the backdrop of his shocking claim Rs 9 trillion in foreign loans and grants received for a period of 10 years up to 2014 couldn’t be accounted for. Of the 10 trillion that had allegedly been borrowed only one trillion could be accounted for. President Sirisena claimed that relevant authorities couldn’t explain what those funds were spent on. At the beginning of the media briefing at the President’s House, Colombo, the President Sirisena, who is also the SLFP leader, alleged that major parties in parliament had succeeded in thwarting his move to have a comprehensive debate on Bond Commission report as well as PRECIFAC findings over a period of two to three days in parliament ahead of Feb. 10 local government polls. (Daily Island, 27.1.2018)

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Sri Lanka grew to over US$1.63bn in 2017, doubling from the US$802m achieved the previous year. The Board of Investment (BOI), the agency tasked with promoting and facilitating FDI, reported that US$1.63bn has been achieved in 2017, which is the highest ever surpassing the US$ 1.61 in 2014, with solid growth across key sectors, the BOI announced. “The strong growth is a direct consequence of the Government’s reorientation of economic policy towards investment and export driven growth, rather than debt-funded public infrastructure spending. Among the highest growth sectors were export-oriented Manufacturing (+27%) and Services which includes Tourism and IT (+50%) and Infrastructure (+190%). The highest FDI came from China, followed by Hong Kong, India and Singapore,” a BOI news release said. The BOI, under the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade, is the first point of contact for foreign investors into the country. (Sunday Island 28.1.2018)