Business

Releasing of State Bank funds to purchase paddy left in limbo

Published

4 years ago

2022/09/19

Thilina Walpola

Agriculture Ministry Secretary keeping his fingers crossed until next Board Meeting at BOC

Farmers say private rice-millers buy paddy at lower prices and sell rice at higher prices

by Sanath Nanayakkare

M.B. Rohana Pushpakumara, Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture told the media on Saturday that the Cabinet had approved a bank facility of Rs. 2000 million from State Banks to purchase Yala Season’s paddy harvest from the farmers, which decision had been subsequently informed to the Banks by the Ministry of Finance, but nevertheless these funds have still not been released to the Paddy Marketing Board (PMB).

“The Cabinet of ministers had given the approval to get a credit facility of Rs. 2,000 million from the Bank of Ceylon and the People’s Bank to purchase the paddy harvest of the Yala season. Accordingly, the Finance Ministry had informed the Banks to release these funds to the PMB. In this backdrop, we started purchasing paddy from farmers immediately, assuming that we would get those funds. But we have still not received Cabinet-approved funds from the Banks, “he said.

“After the directives, we bought paddy to the value of Rs. 850 which was actually bought on credit. Over the past few weeks, we settled 90% of these credit purchases with funds of the PMB. However, we continue to negotiate with the Bank of Ceylon (BOC) to obtain the credit facility soon. What we hear by today is that the BOC is going to hold a Board Meeting by 2nd October, and a decision would be made at it to release the funds. If that happens, we can resume purchasing of paddy which has come to a halt due to lack of funds,” he said.

Meanwhile, farmers told the media that although harvesting of Yala Season’s paddy has started, the government warehouses are not purchasing their yield, and therefore, farmers can’t sell their yield at a competitive price.

“Government’s paddy purchasing centres must be opened as quickly as possible to prevent private rice millers from buying paddy from us at low prices,” they said.

” If we can sell a kilo of paddy at Rs. 150, that will be sufficient for us to cover our expenses and have a fair profit margin. But now we are compelled to sell at Rs. 96-110. That is not enough to cover even the cost of production. A big warehouse in Polonnaruwa has put up a sign as a ‘paddy purchasing centre’, but it remains closed. If the government starts purchasing paddy, then only private millers will start offering competitive prices. What happens now is they buy paddy at lower prices and sell rice at a higher price. If they buy low and sell low, that’s fine. But they are doing it the other way round.”

A farmer association told the media that this situation could lead to a hunger crisis. They, however, said that officials at the Ministry of Agriculture pledged to resolve the issue within a month’s time. They warned that if a solution is not found to the issue within the timeline, farmers and all the people that consume rice as their staple food would take to the streets to launch an Aragalaya.

However, credible news reports earlier this month said that the government was going to mortgage its paddy stocks to state-run banks to obtain required cash to make purchases from farmers in the current season. The move came after the state-run banks declared they were not in a position to extend loans to the state-run PMB to buy paddy as the debt on previous loans amounting to nearly Rs. two billion was still outstanding.

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Business

AIA delivers strong first half results in 2026; double-digit growth across key financial metrics

Published

7 hours ago

2026/09/5

Thilina Walpola

The Board of AIA Group Limited (the “Company”) is pleased to announce the Group’s financial results for the six months ended 30 June 2026. Growth rates are shown on a constant exchange rate basis unless otherwise stated:

New business performance and embedded value

Value of new business (VONB) of US$3,212 million, up 10 per cent overall and 14 per cent excluding Thailand(1)

Record high annualised operating ROEV of 18.0 per cent, up from 15.8 per cent in full year 2025

EV Equity of US$83.4 billion, up 6 per cent per share over the first half on an actual exchange rate basis

IFRS earnings

Operating profit after tax (OPAT) of US$4,163 million, up 13 per cent per share

AIA now expects to exceed OPAT per share CAGR target of 9 to 11 per cent from 2023 to 2026(2)

Record high annualised operating ROE of 17.5 per cent, up from 15.5 per cent in full year 2025

Cash generation and capital returns

Underlying free surplus generation (UFSG) of US$3,935 million, increased by 10 per cent per share

Net free surplus generation (net FSG) of US$2,758 million, up 12 per cent per share

US$3.6 billion returned to shareholders in the first half through dividend and share buy-back

Interim dividend increased by 10 per cent to 53.90 Hong Kong cents per share

Lee Yuan Siong, AIA’s Group Chief Executive and President, said:

“AIA has delivered another strong performance in the first half of 2026, with double-digit growth across our key financial metrics, while continuing to return substantial capital to shareholders. VONB reached a record high of US$3.2 billion with growth across all distribution channels, and all reportable segments excluding Thailand. The Group has achieved 17 per cent CAGR since the first half of 2023(3), demonstrating consistently strong demand for AIA’s professional advice and differentiated products.

“At the core of our unrivalled distribution platform is our market-leading Premier Agency. I am delighted that AIA has once again been ranked the number one Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) multinational company globally. We have held this position for a record 12 consecutive years and we have more than double the number of MDRT members of our nearest competitor. In the first half of 2026, our Premier Agency achieved strong VONB growth of 11 per cent excluding Thailand(1). Our extensive network of strategic distribution partners further expands our market reach and generated an 18 per cent increase in VONB, supported by very strong performance in both the bancassurance and independent financial adviser (IFA) and broker channels.

“Strong new business, together with disciplined management of our in-force portfolio, has supported sustained growth in recurring earnings with OPAT per share up by 13 per cent in the first half. As a result, we expect to exceed our 9 to 11 per cent OPAT per share CAGR target for 2023 to 2026(2). UFSG, the Group’s core measure of operating cash generation, increased by 10 per cent per share. After allowing for new business investment, net FSG increased by 12 per cent per share. In accordance with our prudent, sustainable and progressive dividend policy, the Board has declared a 10 per cent increase in the interim dividend to 53.90 Hong Kong cents per share. These achievements demonstrate that our financial strategy is working as intended.

“Asia remains the most compelling growth opportunity for life and health insurance. Powerful structural tailwinds across the region continue to create substantial demand for our professional advice and differentiated products and underpin the exceptional long-term prospects for AIA’s business. I am confident that AIA’s disciplined execution of our strategic priorities will continue to deliver long-term sustainable value for all our stakeholders.”

Business

British Council Sri Lanka launches soft skills workshops to elevate learning and empower communication

Published

8 hours ago

2026/09/5

Thilina Walpola

The British Council team answering questions on Corporate English Solutions from leading corporates about professional development skills courses

The British Council Sri Lanka has launched Corporate English Solutions (CES), tailored to the Sri Lankan corporate and education ecosystem, aimed at helping organisations strengthen workplace communication and professional development.

The launch event took place recently at the NH Collection, Colombo 3, gathering corporate partners, clients and education stakeholders throughout the country.

CES extends the British Council’s long-standing work in English language education and teacher training into a dedicated offering for the corporate sector. The launch introduced two new components to the British Council’s presence in Sri Lanka such as public workshops and teacher training programmes, open to learners and educators beyond the organisation’s existing corporate and academic partners. Guests at the event were shown a short video introducing Corporate English Solutions before the formal proceedings began.

Talal Meer, British Council Regional Business Development Director, South Asia, welcomed guests and introduced the British Council’s team in Sri Lanka. In his remarks, Meer set out the scope of the CES launch, covering the introduction of public workshops in Sri Lanka, the rollout of teacher training programmes, and an overview of the CES product portfolio. Meer’s role covers educational partnerships in the South Asia region, and his address framed the Sri Lanka launch within the British Council’s broader regional strategy.

Business

Ogilvy Group tops award tally at ‘Dragons of Sri Lanka’ 2026

Published

8 hours ago

2026/09/5

Thilina Walpola

Ogilvy Group Sri Lanka delivered a standout performance at the recently concluded Dragons of Sri Lanka 2026 Awards, securing a total of nine awards comprising two Gold Dragons, one Silver Dragon and six Black Dragons, among the festival’s highest overall award tallies. Gold Dragon wins for Phoenix Ogilvy and Ogilvy Digital, together with the seven additional recognitions across multiple categories, highlighted Ogilvy’s ability to combine creativity, strategic thinking and commercial effectiveness to deliver business results.

Organised by the 4As Sri Lanka, the third edition of Dragons of Sri Lanka shortlisted more than 50 agencies and corporates, making it one of the country’s most competitive marketing communications awards. These local awards, along with the chapters in Malaysia and Pakistan are part of the Dragons of Asia platform, one of the region’s leading programmes for marketing communications effectiveness, with entries being judged on strategy, originality, execution and measurable results.

Ogilvy Digital accounted for eight awards in total, including a Gold Dragon in the Business & Trade Marketing category, and a Silver Dragon in the Innovative Idea or Concept category. The Agency additionally received six Black Dragons across the categories of Innovative Idea or Concept, Business & Trade Marketing, Content Creation, Small Budget, Event or Experiential, and Brand Trial or Sales Generation.

Commenting on the achievement, Sajith Weerasinghe, Chief Operating Officer of Ogilvy Digital, said, “These recognitions reflect the breadth of capabilities we’ve built across strategy, creative, content, experience design, technology and performance marketing. The fact that the work was recognised across so many different disciplines demonstrates our ability to apply creativity to a wide range of business challenges and objectives. We’re proud that this achievement spans multiple clients, categories and types of work, reflecting both the versatility of our people and our commitment to delivering results.”