Business

Sri Lanka’s daily income earners wonder whether they are gone for now, or gone for good

Published

4 years ago

2022/04/11

By Sanath Nanayakkare

As the power struggle among the political elite still takes precedence over the wellbeing of the ordinary people, the common man on the street wonders how long they can cope with the growing vulnerabilities associated with the ongoing economic crisis.

After Finance Minister Ali Sabry told Reuters on Saturday that Sri Lanka would need about US$ 3 billion bridge financing in the next six months and the new Governor of the Central Bank Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe said that the Central Bank would need two years to stabilise the economy, The Island Financial Review spoke to several people in the informal sector to get more intimate details from them about their livelihoods as it was necessary to do so than at any other time in the history of Sri Lanka.

Sunil Senadheera, a 42-year-old carpenter from Moratuwa said that he has not been able to find work for many weeks because of ongoing power outages. “My employer is a furniture maker. He laid me off along with three other workers because there’s no electricity for most part of the day. He can’t afford to run a generator for long hours at the increased price of diesel after the rupee was drastically depreciated against the U.S. dollar and fuel prices skyrocketed. Even when one can afford the price, one can’t spend 2-3 days in long queues to get diesel. My wife who worked in a copy shop in the same town also lost her job because they couldn’t print documents as a result of constant power outages. We are in dire straits as we have to take care of three children aged 13, 10 and 8 years. I pawned my wife’s gold jewelry to put the food on the table and settle other bills. We are scared because some people say that this is only the beginning and we have to brace ourselves for more shocks in the coming weeks unless the leaders unite to resolve the crisis soon.”

Randir Perera (44) who owns a bakery in Nugegoda says lack of flour, butter and other key ingredients in the market has badly hit his business, not to mention the lack of LP gas and electricity which are essential for baking.

“My product range has reduced by at least 50% due to this disruption. As prices of tea buns, fish buns, vegetable rotties etc., increased by 30-40% overnight, my customers buy less now. I have six employees and paying their wages has become a real struggle. I don’t think that any small business can go on paying employees’ monthly basic wages let alone pay a percentage of the monthly wages towards EPF.”

Niluka Ranasinghe, a middle aged mother of two young daughters in Kottawa runs a small eatery to support her family. Her eatery is mainly patronised by bricklayers, carpenters, tuk-tuk drivers, street vendors etc.

“My customers are daily income earners who do a hard day’s work for a living. Generally speaking, they would spend money on food, tea and cigarettes without being stingy. They would even eat and drink in a group and one of them would pay the bill for all. That practice is now history of just one month since the food prices have hit the ceiling and all sorts of shortages have led to a decline in their income. Now they don’t walk in together for a chat over a meal. They come individually and try to be so frugal with their money compared to just a month ago. There is no laughter, banter and teasing among them anymore. This goes to show how hard the living costs and shortages have hit the man on the street. I had a helper at my eatery to help me with making string hoppers and short-eats. Now with the LP gas shortage, power outages and low demand for food items, I don’t make as much. So I was compelled to tell her to stop coming to work until things get better. She was such a nice person and I want to see her working in my eatery again. I’m keeping my fingers crossed,” she said.

Bernard Silva who runs a tailoring shop next to Niluka’s eatery has a story to tell with similar connotations. Bernard says that he only gets to sew a blouse or two for random women customers. “If not for that, I wouldn’t have been able to pay even the rent of my shop space. Hardly any regular customer walks in to get a shirt or a pair of trousers sewn. There is no return on investment for the suit materials I have in stock. In just three days, Sinhala New Year festivities start. This is the busiest time of the year for all small businesses as people prepare for the cheerful holiday season of the country. For all the misfortunes we as a nation faced before, never have I seen a dull and bleak pre-New Year season like this,. It seems that the economic crisis has engulfed even our culture.”

Chathurika Mendis, a trainer of IELTS (International English Language Testing System) said,”The number of students preparing for the IELTS test in Sri Lanka has grown over the last 12 months. They want to get a good result on their IELTS certificate and migrate to the West where they will find opportunities to fulfill their higher education and career aspirations. Many young people have lost hope on their motherland. I know for a fact that they are not looking for greener pastures. It is just that they think the grass here can’t be watered in the foreseeable future.”

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Business

India-Sri Lanka Foundation’s 41st meeting signals a new era of integration

Published

19 hours ago

2026/09/2

Sahan Weerasooriya

High Commissioners Santosh Jha and Mahishini Colonne chaired the 41st India-Sri Lanka Foundation meeting in New Delhi, highlighting ongoing bilateral cooperation across cultural, economic, and infrastructure sectors.

By Sanath Nanayakkare

On the surface, the 41st Board Meeting of the India-Sri Lanka Foundation (ISLF) in New Delhi on August 28, 2026, was structured as a routine diplomatic engagement. Co-chaired by Indian High Commissioner Santosh Jha and Sri Lankan High Commissioner Mahishini Colonne, the session formally approved a standard slate of cultural and educational projects.

However, looking closer at the broader macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape, the meeting underscored a much deeper structural alignment between the two nations. Against a backdrop of ongoing economic recovery, bilateral discussions increasingly touch upon critical areas of regional integration, investment, and infrastructure.

Among the key areas attracting attention are post-civil war reconciliation efforts and administrative milestones in the Northern Province.

Discussions in diplomatic circles continue to focus on the progressive release of state-held lands back to civilian inhabitants, alongside the anticipated finalization of provincial council elections to support local governance frameworks.

In the economic sphere, commercial integration remains a central theme as Sri Lanka stabilizes its foreign exchange reserves.

Recent financial dialogues in Colombo were seen exploring mechanisms such as transacting in Indian Rupees (INR), aligning with wider regional efforts to facilitate bilateral trade settlements and mitigate foreign currency pressures. Financial institutions, including the State Bank of India, continue to support these bilateral trade facilitation mechanisms.

Cooperation in the energy sector is also progressing through key joint ventures aimed at harnessing renewable resources. Proposals such as the 200MW solar power project in Sampur, developed via a partnership between NTPC and the Ceylon Electricity Board, highlight ongoing efforts to diversify national power generation. Discussions concerning cross-border grid interconnections further reflect strategies to enhance regional energy security and optimize renewable capacity.

At the same time, ongoing reviews of project tariffs – such as those involving renewable initiatives by firms like Adani Green Energy – demonstrate the government’s focus on balancing capital investments with domestic economic interests.

As the ISLF marks decades of supporting bilateral cultural exchanges through hundreds of initiatives, the overarching partnership between New Delhi and Colombo continues to evolve. Navigating these complex frameworks of trade, energy, and development remains essential as Sri Lanka charts its economic future within the South Asian region.

Business

Sysco LABS named one of Sri Lanka’s Most Outstanding Women-Friendly Workplaces for 2026

Published

19 hours ago

2026/09/2

Sahan Weerasooriya

At the far left and far right, respectively: Ruchini Weerawardena, Senior Manager – Talent Management and Development, and Tashiya Jayatilaka, Team Lead – People Operations accepting the award on behalf of Sysco LABS.

Sysco LABS, the Global Innovation Center of Sysco, has been named one of Sri Lanka’s Most Outstanding Women-Friendly Workplaces at the Women-Friendly Workplace Awards 2026, marking its highest recognition at the awards to date.

The recognition represents an important milestone in Sysco LABS’ ongoing journey to build a workplace where women are supported not only to enter and participate in the technology industry, but to develop, progress and build meaningful long-term careers.

Held recently, the 2026 awards organized by Satynmag continued a six-year journey of recognizing and encouraging organizations to move beyond intention towards meaningful and measurable progress for women at work. This year’s awards placed particular emphasis on a defining question for women-friendly workplaces: beyond representation, how far are women able to go?

This win also reflects a progression in the company’s recognition journey at the Women Friendly Workplaces Awards. Following an “Honorable Mention” in the 2023 edition of the ceremony while winning a special award for “Best Women in STEM Project” in 2025, 2026 marks the first time Sysco LABS has been recognized as one of Sri Lanka’s Most Outstanding Women-Friendly Workplaces.

Business

CCPI-based headline inflation accelerates in August 2026

Published

19 hours ago

2026/09/2

Sahan Weerasooriya

The Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI, 2021=100) based headline inflation (year-on-year, Y-o-Y) increased to 8.0% in August 2026 from 7.3% in July 2026, primarily due to the statistical base effect in food inflation. Meanwhile, food inflation (Y-o-Y) increased to 8.5% in August 2026 from 6.3% in July 2026, contributing mainly to the increase in headline inflation, while non-food inflation (Y-o-Y) decelerated to 7.7% in August 2026 from 7.8% in July 2026.

On a month-on-month basis, the CCPI increased by 0.28% in August 2026. This increase was mainly driven by the food category, which contributed 0.20 percentage point, largely owing to the increase in prices of Milk Powder, while the non-food category contributed a marginal 0.07 percentage point.

Meanwhile, core inflation (Y-o-Y) accelerated to 5.1% in August 2026 from 4.4% in July 2026.

According to the inflation projections made at the monetary policy round in July 2026, headline inflation is expected to remain above the target of 5% in the near term, before easing and stabilising around the target over the medium term, supported by appropriate policy measures. These projections are conditional, among other assumptions, on the expectation that the effects of the tensions in the Middle East and their spillovers will be temporary and gradually dissipate.