An economic analyst speaking to The Island Financial Review on the condition of anonymity, questioned the government’s structural priorities, calling the decision to purchase only two percent of the national buffer stock a glaring policy disconnect that leaves struggling paddy farmers vulnerable to a heavily consolidated private milling cartel.

The critique comes as the state celebrates an unprecedented domestic fiscal turnaround, registering massive budget surpluses and actively paying down its public debts. Yet, despite this robust fiscal space, the state’s direct intervention in the rural agricultural market remains profoundly meagre.

“When the government boasts an overwhelmingly strong fiscal position, it is entirely incomprehensible why it refuses to allocate sufficient capital to aggressively purchase paddy directly from the producers. The current allocation strategy artificially limits the state’s market-stabilising power, effectively abandoning debt-burdened farmers to the pricing whims of large-scale private millers who dominate the post-harvest supply chain,” he said.

This contentious market dynamic unfolds just as the Paddy Marketing Board (PMB) prepares to activate its Yala season procurement machinery. PMB Chairman Manjula Pinnalanda announced that state purchasing would commence today across early-harvesting zones including the Ampara and Ruhuna regions, alongside parts of the Mullaitivu and Trincomalee Districts in the Northern and Eastern Provinces. Operations across remaining cultivation areas are scheduled to launch on July 20.

The government has established baseline guaranteed rates for the harvest, fixing prices at Rs. 120 per kilogram for Nadu, Rs. 130 per kilogram for Samba, and Rs. 140 per kilogram for Keeri Samba. To facilitate the rollout, the Treasury has disbursed a direct cash allocation of Rs. 6 billion to the PMB, supplemented by a secondary Rs. 10 billion concessionary pledge loan scheme channeled through state banks to assist small and medium-scale mill owners and eligible co-operatives.

However, the analyst pointed out that while the set prices look reasonable on paper, the state’s limited capital allocation severely restricts its actual buying capacity. Because the PMB absorbs only 2% of the national yield, the official floor price will fail to act as a safety net, leaving a vast majority of smallholder farmers unable to access state granaries and will be forced to sell their crop to private commercial buyers below production costs.

“The tight-fisted approach to agricultural procurement stands in stark contrast to the stellar macroeconomic numbers flashing across the Central Bank’s latest reports. During the first five months of 2026, Sri Lanka’s domestic fiscal consolidation reached historic heights, driven by a 30.6 percent surge in government revenue and grants to Rs. 2,536.9 billion. Tax revenues alone ballooned to Rs. 2,323.7 billion, fueled by rigid enforcement and an expanded collection matrix. With the commercial bank middle rate settling at Rs. 335.90 per USD. For the farming community, this currency slide has manifested as an immediate escalation in the cost of fertiliser and pesticides. Although the wider economy maintains a degree of stability via strong workers’ remittances and healthy gross official reserves of US dollar 6,450 million, the microeconomic reality in the fields remains tense,” he said.

The analyst warned that treating the agricultural sector with fiscal austerity while the Treasury sits on a surplus is a dangerous gamble.

By Sanath Nanayakkare

Sri Lanka Insurance Life (SLICLL) has set a new benchmark in the domestic insurance sector by declaring a record-breaking Rs. 14.68 billion bonus to its policyholders for the financial year 2025.

This milestone represents the highest annual life insurance bonus ever declared in the history of the Sri Lankan industry. It also pushes the company’s cumulative bonus distributions since 2006 to an unmatched Rs. 131.28 billion, reinforcing its market-leading position and financial reliability.

The unprecedented payout is backed by a robust financial performance in 2025, during which the insurer navigated evolving macroeconomic conditions with notable resilience. By the end of the year, SLICLL’s total asset base expanded to Rs. 275 billion, while its Life Fund grew to Rs. 247 billion, retaining its status as the largest life fund in the country. The company’s profitability remained strong with a Profit Before Tax of Rs. 4.3 billion.

Growth metrics were equally impressive; Gross Written Premium (GWP) rose 24% year-on-year to Rs. 32.6 billion, and New Business Premium Income surged 42% to reach Rs. 7.56 billion. Demonstrating its commitment to policyholder liquidity, the firm settled approximately Rs. 16.2 billion in claims and maturities throughout the year, averaging over Rs. 1.35 billion monthly.

Beyond financial metrics, SLICLL prioritized customer centricity and digital transformation alongside substantial community investments. Guided by its foundational corporate social responsibility framework, the company’s ‘Pasal Piriyatha Surakimu’ initiative has refurbished over 3,365 underprivileged schools since 2007. Furthermore, its ‘Suba Pathum Scholarship Programme’ has granted over Rs. 240 million to exceptional students since 2014, including 225 scholarships awarded in 2025 alone.

The Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (SLID) will host the Sri Lanka Corporate Director Summit 2026 on 22 July at Cinnamon Grand Colombo, placing future-ready boards at the centre of corporate governance reform.

Under the theme of building boards that can navigate disruption and drive sustainable growth, the one-day forum will move beyond traditional compliance discussions. It will focus on how directors can become strategic leaders in technology oversight, talent development, reputation management, and long-term value creation.

Key sessions include “Governing AI, Cybersecurity & Digital Risk,” “Trust is Capital – Why Reputation is a Boardroom Issue,” and “Talent and Culture — What Boards Can No Longer Ignore.” A keynote address will draw lessons from India and other emerging markets on transitioning from compliance to competitive advantage.

Chairman Dinesh Weerakkody stressed that boards must treat governance as a strategic tool for resilience and investment attraction. CEO Anitra Perera noted that the summit marks SLID’s 25th anniversary and its commitment to strengthening board leadership. Summit Chair Charaka Perera and Technical Chair Sutheash Balasubramaniam highlighted the need for directors to anticipate disruption and think further ahead.

The event, held in partnership with Deloitte Sri Lanka and knowledge partners CPA, Ma Foi, and the University of Buckingham, is expected to set new benchmarks for board effectiveness in Sri Lanka’s corporate sector.