Business

‘One-man soft power engine’ who builds bridges between communities

Published

1 year ago

2025/06/11

Nisther Annis: ‘Bridge-builder’

In the competitive world of global tourism, few private citizens have made a national impact quite like Nisther Annis. A Sri Lankan entrepreneur who rose to prominence in the UK’s travel industry, Annis transformed not only the way Britons experienced Sri Lanka, but how they understood it. Over the span of four decades, he became a one-man soft power engine—deploying business strategy, diaspora networks, and cultural insight to elevate Sri Lanka’s global brand.

“I always believed Sri Lanka could offer more than just beaches, Annis told The Island Financial Review.

He added: “We had culture, faith, family, food, and hospitality. All we needed was the right narrative—and a business model to deliver it.”

Annis’s strategic instincts were inherited. He is the eldest son of S. M. Annis, the most senior official in the country’s Public Works Department, whose infrastructure projects defined Sri Lanka’s physical landscape post-independence. “My father laid roads and built bridges, Annis says. “I like to think I did the same—just across countries and communities.”

Founding Annis Travels & Tours in London in 1980, he went on to become the first Sri Lankan to be inducted as a Fellow of the UK’s Institute of Travel and Tourism. This recognition helped him build credibility among major international airlines, leading to long-term partnerships with Emirates, Qatar Airways, Royal Jordanian, PIA, and SriLankan Airlines.

But Annis was never interested in tourism for tourism’s sake. He saw the industry as a lever to reposition Sri Lanka economically. One of his most successful ventures was integrating Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages with Colombo stopovers. “I worked with Saudi Airlines and SriLankan Airlines to design a seamless route,” he explains. “Suddenly, Colombo became more than a transit—it became a destination.”

These carefully engineered stopovers translated into millions in revenue across Sri Lanka’s hotels, restaurants, and retail outlets—without government subsidy.

In a similar vein, he tapped into medical tourism, connecting Sri Lanka’s growing private hospital network with South Asian patients in the UK. “There was a gap, he notes. “Private hospitals in Colombo had the skill and pricing advantage. I connected them to patients who were paying five times more for the same care in the UK.”

Annis also pioneered high-spend niche tourism segments. Recognizing the growing appeal of destination weddings, he organized the UK’s first Sri Lankan wedding fair. “We created a pipeline of couples bringing not just themselves but 100 guests, each spending dollars in Sri Lanka. That’s how you create ripple effects.”

He emphasizes that his approach has always combined commerce with emotion. “Every Sri Lankan abroad wants to be useful to their country. My job was to turn that feeling into structured economic activity.”

A master of cultural branding, Annis understood the symbolic power of cricket. After Sri Lanka’s 1996 World Cup victory, he organized a high-profile gala dinner at London Hilton Kensington, bringing the team together with the business community and diplomats. “That night, we weren’t a small island. We were a world champion,” he says. “People saw us differently.”

Following the 2004 tsunami, Annis co-founded the Al Ihsaan Trust UK, which continues to fund orphan support, women’s programs and free clinics in Sri Lanka. “We didn’t just send donations. We sent business plans, he says. “It was about dignity, not dependency.”

Among Annis’s boldest ideas is a direct cruise line between Sri Lanka and the UK—connecting Colombo, the Gulf and Europe. The project, while delayed due to regional security issues, remains part of his long-term vision. “Maritime tourism is underutilized, he argues. “One cruise ship can bring in the equivalent of four planeloads of tourists—many of them high-spending.”

By Ifham Nizam

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Business

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

Published

5 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

5 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

5 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.