News
Ex-envoy asks govt. to reduce number of SL foreign missions
Sri Lanka’s former High Commissioner in New Delhi and founder of the Pathfinder Foundation, Milinda Moragoda, has called for a reduction in the number of Sri Lanka overseas missions. The one-time minister said that technology had created a much more globally connected world and transformed the ways in which international diplomacy could be conducted.
In light of this, and as part of Sri Lanka’s urgent need to modernise its governance structure, create efficiencies, and optimise limited resources, he is urging the Government to seriously consider drastically reducing the number of its diplomatic missions abroad. At present, Sri Lanka has over 60, most of which are understaffed and under-resourced. In contrast, Singapore, with foreign exchange reserves of close to USD 325 billion, has around 50.
Moragoda has observed that if a zero-based budgeting approach were taken, where the existence of every mission has to be justified, Sri Lanka could easily reduce at least 10 of its overseas missions, and that part of this savings could be used to bolster the activities of the remaining embassies and consulates.
He said the need for each diplomatic representation and embassy should be assessed dispassionately, taking into consideration functionality, affordability, and national interest.
The government should then focus on empowering selected missions that could overlook activities at a regional level and allocating extra resources to these, he added. He suggested that, as is the case with Singapore, some ambassadors could be based at the foreign ministry with periodic visits to their countries of accreditation in keeping with a prearranged activity plan.
Moragoda is of the view that the ongoing budgetary crisis has provided a good opportunity to think afresh and rationalise and re-evaluate institutions and policies founded under different historical and societal circumstances and that any system has to evolve and adapt to changing times.
Foreign News
One dead in US after being struck by taking off Frontier Airlines plane
A person has died after jumping an airport perimeter fence in the US state of Colorado and being struck by a Frontier Airlines plane, according to authorities.
Denver International Airport said the unusual incident occurred late Friday, after the unidentified individual gained access to the tarmac.
It said the “pedestrian jumped the perimeter fence and was hit just two minutes later while crossing the runway”.
A brief engine fire followed the collision, which was put out by emergency responders, according to the airport.
It said that 12 of the 231 people on board suffered minor injuries, with five hospitalised.
The airport said investigators had examined the fence line where the individual entered and “found it to be intact”.
It added that the struck individual “is not believed to be an employee of the airport”.
“We are extremely saddened by this incident and express our sympathies to those involved,” the airport said.
Both local authorities and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) were investigating the incident.
Airport safety in the US came under renewed scrutiny earlier this year amid a prolonged shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which temporarily left both Transportation Security Agents (TSA) and air traffic controllers working without pay.
While instances of people being killed on airport tarmacs are rare, Friday’s incident came a day after a Delta employee was killed after an airport vehicle struck an airbridge at Orlando International Airport.
In March, two pilots were killed after an Air Canada Express plane crashed into a fire-rescue vehicle at LaGuardia Airport in New York.
About 225,000 people travel through Denver International Airport a day.
[Aljazeera]
Latest News
Showers above 100 mm are likely at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Southern, Uva, North-western and Northern provinces and in Anuradhapura district.
WEATHER FORECAST FOR 10 MAY 2026
Issued at 05.30 a.m. on 10 May 2026 by the Department of Meteorology
The low-level atmospheric disturbance in the vicinity of Sri Lanka is likely to develop into a low-pressure area around 11th of May. Therefore, the prevailing showery conditions over the island are expected to continue during the next few days.
Showers or thundershowers will occur at most places over the island, and cloudy skies are expected over the island. Heavy showers above 100 mm are likely at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Southern, Uva, North-western and Northern provinces and in Anuradhapura district.
The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damage caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.
News
Lanka Port City officials to meet investors in Dubai
ECONOMYNEXT –Colombo Port City (CPC) officials will head to Dubai to meet with investors on June 11, as Sri Lanka’s most ambitious economic zone looks for further foreign investments.
“We are meeting people in Dubai and the Middle East in order to demonstrate that Colombo Port City can be a supplementary zone of investment,” Harsha Amarasekara, Chairman, Colombo Port City Economic Commission (CPCEC), told Economynext.
The meeting will be organised by CPCEC, China Harbour Engineering Company, Consulate General of Sri Lanka – Dubai, and the Embassy of Sri Lanka – Abu Dhabi.
Foreign investor meetings have been a consistent factor in marketing CPC, and identifying potential markets has been a priority for CHEC and CPCEC.
“We have shortlisted and identified primary markets and we have combed the globe in that to say have a rationale behind why you would want to do certain things, a road show in a particular country,” Thulci Aluwihare, Deputy Managing Director, CHEC Port City Colombo, told Echelon Media.
“Once we kind of shortlist on that, then we aggressively go and market Port City, first Sri Lanka I should say, then Port City.”
“Sri Lanka is known in the world as a tourist destination, not essentially for a doing business capital. That is the narrative that we are trying to change,” he added.
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