Business
AIA Insurance globally recognised as the Best Life Insurance Company in Sri Lanka, yet again

What makes a company the best? Is it it’s strength, stability and reputation? Is it the force of an exceptional team that drives it? Perhaps its unrivalled innovation and agility? Or more so, the fact that it goes above and beyond in what it offers its stakeholders. Maybe its world-class standards and exposure with in-depth local understanding? And certainly, its commitment to the community and society that surpasses just business objectives. Indeed, it is all of these and that’s how and why AIA Insurance has been recognised as the Best Life Insurance Company in Sri Lanka, for the fourth year.
Awarded by internationally acclaimed Capital Finance International for 2022, this is testimony to the significant contribution made by AIA to Sri Lanka’s life insurance industry in terms of its innovative and inclusive products and propositions, superlative customer experience, community investment initiatives and workforce empowerment.
Last year was no doubt a trying year for Sri Lanka with an unprecedented social and economic backdrop. Despite it being an economically challenging time for all businesses, AIA was determined to be there for Sri Lanka and her people when it was most needed. As such the company’s focus on societal endeavours took precedence. Be it renovating underprivileged schools and hospitals around the island or providing support to underprivileged and vulnerable children and elders, AIA’s priority was giving back to the community.
The company managed many societal endeavours during the last year, including projects with HelpAge Sri Lanka, SOS Children’s Villages Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Cancer Society, Lanka Alzheimer’s Foundation, Department of Probation and Childcare Services, not to forget AIA’s flagship CSR projects, the National Poson Safety Programme and Higher Education Scholarships, which are two of the longest standing projects in the country.
The company remained committed to enhancing the customer experience, while increasing efficiency and convenience through new and improved digitalized processes. As a company pioneering digital transformation in the industry, AIA has launched many industry firsts including a modern human centric point of sales (POS) solution, cloud-based workflow automation, robotic process automation, cloud-based strategy, remote digital signatures for customer onboarding and advanced analytics for intelligent decision making. AIA’s efforts towards going paperless has further established its green commitment while also ensuring faster, better connectivity with customers.
Boasting the highest calibre of agents, AIA’s sales force is part of the world’s #1 MDRT life insurer, that being AIA Group. With this strength, AIA’s team of sales professionals have world-class training, exposure and insights that help them deliver a superlative service to customers.
While providing protection to customers at every stage of their lives, AIA offers a wide range of retirement, health, protection and savings solutions for all Sri Lankans. The product suite is designed and enriched by not only an in-depth understanding of the needs of the local customer, but also an expertise acquired in over a hundred years of experience in Asia. The health space is yet another important area for AIA and the company is very active through not only products, but overall propositions, and stands as a firm pioneer in this space. As AIA embraces the brand promise of helping people live healthier, longer, better lives, its mission is to proactively enable and support its customers to be physically and mentally secure as well. Having partnered some of Sri Lanka’s most reputed wellness partners including Doc990, My Dentist, Vida Medical Clinic and Teardrop hotels, AIA is the only insurer in Sri Lanka to offer customers an eco-system of wellness propositions to help them stay active, healthy and happy.
Helping to stay healthy and happy is further extended to its employees as well, and the company earned the LEGEND title for been recognised as a Best Workplace in Sri Lanka for the tenth consecutive year. In 2022, the company was also adjudged one of the Best Workplaces for Women in Sri Lanka for the fifth straight year, by Great Place to Work® and as one of the Most Outstanding Women Friendly Workplaces by Satynmag.com and CIMA Sri Lanka. To top it all, AIA was also recognised as one of the top 10 Best Workplaces in the Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI) industry in Sri Lanka last year.
Throughout it all, the company maintained its financial stability, despite the economic challenges and remained strongly capitalised with a shareholder’s equity of LKR 18.4 billion by end 2022, and one of the highest Capital Adequacy Ratios in the industry which amounted to 402% by end 2022. This demonstrated the ability of AIA to withstand risk and crisis in the operating environment and deliver their promise to customers consistently. This is supported by the company’s prudent investment strategy which focuses on high quality investments. AIA has always exceeded customer expectations and has a track record of over 30 years of delivering above the promised customer dividends.
All these combined has established AIA as a truly world-class company with deep and rooted local insights that help it go above and beyond life insurance, to be a partner, a friend, a family to its customers- and that is what makes AIA the best life insurance company in Sri Lanka.
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Business
Environmental devastation seen as precipitating economic crisis in Northern Sri Lanka

As parched soil cracks underfoot and once-thriving fields lie fallow, the farmers of Mannar are living on the frontlines of a crisis that is no longer just environmental — it’s economic. Climate change has tightened its grip on this northern region, and with each failed monsoon and dwindling harvest, the livelihoods of entire communities are evaporating.
The Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ), along with local stakeholders, has raised urgent concerns over the increasingly hostile conditions faced by farmers in the region. At the heart of the problem are erratic weather patterns — prolonged droughts, unpredictable rainfall, and extreme heat — all of which disrupt the delicate balance required for traditional farming practices.
“The erratic weather patterns triggered by climate change are not only drying up water sources but also pushing already vulnerable farming communities deeper into poverty, Dilena Pathragoda, Executive Director, CEJ told The Island Financial Review.
He added: “The economic consequences are severe — from crop failures to loss of livelihoods — and without timely interventions and climate-resilient strategies, the long-term sustainability of agriculture in regions like Mannar is in jeopardy.”
In 2024 alone, nearly 3,000 acres of paddy land in Mannar District were left uncultivated due to lack of water, according to data from local agrarian offices.
In other words, this represents an estimated loss of over Rs. 225 million in potential harvest income, based on average yields and market prices. Farmers who once cultivated rice, onions and vegetables with predictable seasonal success now face devastating uncertainty.
The failure of rain-fed tanks (reservoirs) and the drying up of canals have made irrigation nearly impossible in some areas. In Nanattan and Musali divisions, water availability dropped by some 60 per cent compared to historical averages. As water becomes scarcer, so do incomes, leading many families to take on debt or abandon agriculture altogether in search of daily-wage labour.
This agricultural downturn is having ripple effects throughout the local economy. In Mannar, where over 60% of households depend directly or indirectly on farming, the collapse of agricultural productivity has led to rising food prices, shrinking local markets, and reduced cash flow for small businesses. Fertilizer vendors, seed suppliers and even transport workers are reporting significant losses.
“Some farmers have seen their seasonal incomes drop from Rs. 200,000 to under Rs. 50,000, noted one local agriculture officer. “Many are defaulting on informal loans and are now relying on relief aid to survive.”
Economists warn that this trend, if unchecked, could contribute to broader socio-economic instability. Rural depopulation, youth migration, and heightened inequality are already being observed in vulnerable districts. Women, in particular, face added burdens as household food security becomes more precarious and access to clean water requires greater physical labor.
Despite these challenges, experts insist that solutions are within reach. Climate-resilient farming techniques — such as drip irrigation, drought-tolerant crops, and community-managed water systems — have shown promise in pilot projects across other dry zones. However, scaling these up requires political will, coordinated planning, and substantial investment.
Environmental advocates also call for a shift in national agricultural policy. “Rather than pouring money into outdated infrastructure or monoculture subsidies, Sri Lanka must pivot towards sustainable, adaptive farming models, said Pathragoda. “This includes better support for farmers’ education, access to technology, and integrated land and water management.”
Civil society groups, including CEJ, are urging both the government and international donors to treat the Mannar crisis as a wake-up call. Climate finance mechanisms, they argue, must be made accessible to grassroots communities, not just large-scale development firms. Moreover, climate justice must take center stage — recognizing that those suffering most have contributed least to the global emissions causing these disruptions.
As Sri Lanka navigates an uncertain economic recovery, ensuring food security and rural resilience is more than an environmental imperative — it’s a matter of national stability, Pathragoda stressed.
By Ifham Nizam
Business
CSE and NCE partner to empower Sri Lankan exporters

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and the National Chamber of Exporters of Sri Lanka (NCE) entered into a strategic partnership to support Sri Lankan exporters by enhancing their access to capital market opportunities and broadening visibility for their businesses.
The partnership agreement was signed by Shiham Marikar, Secretary General / CEO, The National Chamber of Exporters of Sri Lanka, and Ms. Vindhya Jayasekera, Chief Executive Officer Designate, CSE. The signing ceremony was attended by Ms. Dilini Gamlathge, Assistant Director, Member Services/Operations, The National Chamber of Exporters of Sri Lanka; Ms. Punyamali Saparamadu, SVP Commercial, CSE; Ms. Himashi Wickramasinghe, Manager, Commercial, CSE; Ms. Shivandini Liyanage, SVP, Legal, Enforcement and Compliance, CSE; and Kanishka Gunawardana, Manager, Enforcement and Compliance, CSE.
This partnership with the CSE will provide NCE members—both experienced exporters and aspiring ones—with access to vital capital market knowledge and services to support their business expansion efforts.
This collaboration aims to offer exporters tools and resources to strengthen their market presence and growth potential. It also creates a platform for SMEs within the export sector to consider listing on the Colombo Stock Exchange, particularly through the Empower Board—dedicated to facilitating capital raising for small and medium-sized businesses.
Through this partnership, CSE will also gain direct access to a network of established exporters, enhancing the reach of capital market education, awareness-building, and strategic financing solutions among key players in Sri Lanka’s export economy.
The collaboration will further enable opportunities for joint forums, knowledge-sharing sessions, and networking events, providing exporters with guidance on alternative avenues for capital generation and highlighting the benefits of corporate good governance and transparency through listing.
This partnership adds credibility to the CSE and NCE’s shared efforts and signals trustworthiness to potential stakeholders, offering significant advantages for fostering growth, strategic opportunities, and long-term development within Sri Lanka’s export sector.
Business
A case for a visa-free tourism regime in SL

Sri Lanka should not have any restrictions for tourist arrivals and a visa-free regime is the need of the hour to woo more visitors, said travel and aviation expert Nihal C.B. Perera.
The founder of a family-owned company in Sri Lanka, Sparklink Travels, Perera said that Sri Lanka should offer the same ‘Visa Free facility’ initiated by Singapore and now successfully implemented by Thailand.
A former Ceylon Tourist Board, Development and Publicity Director, he said that during his time, they leased or gave several unused state land areas to build hotels. “But we told the investors that the construction has to start in six months, and this happened.”
One such venture was the opening of the Pegasus Reef Hotel at Wattala.
Perera also initiated the creation of special tourism zones in Bentota, Hikkaduwa and several other areas.
After a nearly 15-year stint at the Tourist Board, he formed his own travel company, Sparklink Travels, in 1979 with just 4 employees. “With the rapid expansion of business, and being recognized as an IATA-accredited travel agency, we increased our employee strength and moved into our own four-storey building in Bambalapitiya. We also opened a branch in Australia, he said.
“After the COVID pandemic, we also negotiated with airlines and refunded all passenger tickets purchased and cancelled due to COVID-19, Perera explained.
He recalled the days when people were issued small booklet-type air tickets and how his staff had to visit the airline offices to collect them. Perera added: “The online has changed these and I think this is a time-saving move.
“Unlike two decades ago, online and payment gateways have enabled people to book their own air tickets from home and we too have changed our strategies to find new businesses.”
Today, Sparklink Travels continues with his son Praki Perera, heading the company’s operations in Sri Lanka and Australia.
Their dedication ensures that the company remains a premier provider of air travel, cruises and tours, with professional services tailored to enhance the true essence of travel.
Perera, who has been a pioneering force in Sri Lanka’s tourism sector, was also honored as a ‘Tourism Legend’ at the annual industry awards.
By Hiran H. Senewiratne
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