Business

‘Hambantota Port and Port City should be run on P-P-P basis to reap full benefits’

Published

2 years ago

2021/04/28

By Hiran H.Senewiratne

“The government should have a stable system to tackle the Covid 19 pandemic situation. It should have a short term to long term economic plan to arrest the economic crisis that has resulted from the pandemic. In the short term perspective, the government should go for short term foreign exchange borrowings at a nominal interest rate; selling liquid assets. However, Hambantota Port and the Port City projects have to be private-public partnership projects, to enable the country to get the maximum benefits out of them, Professor of Economics, University of Colombo Sirimal Abeyratne said

“The current Covid 19 pandemic has further aggravated the local economy which is already marred by inconsistent economic policies and poor fiscal management for which every government that has come to power so far is responsible, Abeyratne said.

” The problems of Sri Lanka are unique even without the Covid 19 pandemic. The economy of the country has clearly not moved in the proper direction over the years. The economy had been rendered weak due to scarce foreign reserves, poor fiscal policy management and the slow exploration of export markets in the recent past, Abeyratne told The Island Financial Review yesterday.

Abeyratne added: “Bilateral and multilateral short term borrowings should be obtained subject to conditions which are beneficial to the country. If not, the problem would further deteriorate with the high debt servicing cost.

“At present, import restrictions imposed by the government are a prudent move to preserve foreign exchange, which at present stands at US $ 4 billion, ample for three months’ imports.

‘At this juncture, the government should focus on economic growth strategies and improve export oriented markets. When it comes to economic growth, a prudent fiscal management mechanism is the need of the hour, which would enhance the effective management of government spending and its revenue.

“Since the local domestic market is small it is very important to attract foreign direct investments into the country. We should at least attract US$ one billion worth foreign investments into the country.

“Sri Lanka’s investment climate is not encouraging because of policy issues and regulatory issues. The government should now take some steps to address those issues to attract FDIs into the country.

“In the recent past, several economies in the region have overtaken Sri Lanka because those countries have placed their economic fundamentals properly. Unfortunately, inconsistent economic policies have affected our economic development very badly.”

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Business

Once again, AIA ran for their lives – Proud sponsor for the 3rd consecutive year.

Published

3 hours ago

2023/04/2

Thilina Walpola

AIA Insurance was humbled to be a part of Run For Their Lives 2023, in raising funds for the Apeksha Cancer Hospital. The charity run aligns with AIA’s brand purpose of helping people live healthier, longer, better lives with focus on the prevention and management of Non-Communicable Diseases in Sri Lanka. The company will continue its commitment to fight NCDs and actively engage in creating awareness on leading NCDs in the country, AIA said in a news release.

“With AIA’s goal of making a positive impact on one billion lives by 2030, participants at RFTL were encouraged to make a pledge for a healthy habit that could help prevent illness and remain healthy in the long run. The participants also took part in a real-time survey that measured their unhealthy habits and recommended healthy lifestyle habits. Participants were also instantly rewarded for taking part in the wellness games and the free BMI sessions organised by one of AIA’s wellness partner Vida Medical Clinic,” it said.

Business

Exterminators PLC records 48% in capital gains and dividend payout of Rs. 31.5 M one year after listing

Published

3 hours ago

2023/04/2

Thilina Walpola

Managing Director of Exterminators PLC Marlon Ferreira and the team

Exterminators PLC, Sri Lanka’s premier pest tech and environmental enhancement technology company, celebrates one year on March 30th, 2023, upon its listing on the ‘Colombo Stock Exchange’. Founded with an initial investment of Rs. 75,000 way back in 1998, today’s market capitalization is over Rs. 470 million and the company also created history by becoming the first pest management company in South Asia and emerging and developing markets to be listed on the stock exchange. During the first nine months of the FY22-23, the revenue increased by 37%, the gross profit by 29%, the operating profit by 29%, the profit before tax by 63% and the net profit by 62%. The GP margin is 73%, the NP margin is 27% and the capital gain is 48% as of March 28, 2023. The company’s dividend payout in 2022 was LKR 31.5 million, which included a cash dividend of LKR 14 million and a scrip dividend amounting to LKR 17.4 million.

Marlon Ferreira, Managing Director of Exterminators PLC said: “We anticipate that the pest management and agricultural sectors will have significant growth in the mid- to long-term in Sri Lanka and the emerging developing markets. The company is expecting to reduce operational and administration costs due to the creation of synergies within divisions, which would have a positive impact on the bottom line and in turn create value for all stakeholders Operating from four locations in Colombo, Kandy, Malabe, and Dambulla, the company has set in place the necessary groundwork to expand to several key cities on the island and has plans to setup the global business expansion project in the first quarter of the financial year 23/24.

Business

Fcode Labs wins two awards at e-Swabhimani

Published

3 hours ago

2023/04/2

Thilina Walpola

Flingo and CarromBot, two products by Fcode Labs (Pvt) Ltd, a leading software development and digital solutions company, were adjudged winners at the e-Swabhimani Awards, an initiative of the Information Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka aimed at recognizing excellence in digital applications. This gala event was held recently in Colombo for the 11th consecutive time. CarromBot, an AI-based robot that can play a carrom game on its own, was awarded as a Winner in the Digital Entertainment category. The robot identifies the correct piece to shoot, the power, and the angle to shoot.

Flingo, a mobile application where you can draw art and chat in real time with your friends and loved ones, won a Merit award at the ceremony. Flingo provides a sophisticated set of drawing features and a smooth user experience for the users. Fcode Labs (Pvt) Ltd is a company based in Sri Lanka and Singapore that focuses on Digital Transformation, Digital Product engineering, AI, and Blockchain services.

Founded in 2018, it now comprises 60-members that work on developing high-quality Software products. Further details of the company can be accessed on their website www.fcodelabs.com. This is not the first time that Fcode Labs has won e-Swabhimani awards. The company was awarded in 2018 and 2019 for their innovative products. Recently it was also recognized as the 35th best workplace to work in Asia (Small to medium category) by Great Place to Work.