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Interview

Arjun Bahadur Thapa, Secretary-General, South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC): Interview
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Interview:Arjun Bahadur Thapa What are the most cumbersome barriers in the way of increased intra-SAARC trade volumes? ARJUN BAHADUR THAPA: Intra-SAARC trade volumes are not as low as generally perceived. For example, India, as the largest market in SAARC, trades substantially within the region. Both Nepal and Bhutan conduct more than 60% of their trade with India, while Sri Lanka and…
Interview

President Maithripala Sirisena: Interview
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Interview: President Maithripala Sirisena Following the 2015 elections, what do you view as the most pressing priorities for political reform? PRESIDENT MAITHRIPALA SIRISENA: The people of Sri Lanka gave me a mandate at the presidential election held in January 2015 to take Sri Lanka on the path to progress as an awakened nation that values good governance, democracy, the rule of law and equal opportunities…
Interview

Ravi Karunanayake, Minister of Finance and Planning: Interview
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Interview:Ravi Karunanayake What changes will the new administration make? RAVI KARUNANAYAKE: We are a new government with a fresh mandate that will enable us to become much stronger than we are now. Our intention is to rectify many of the anomalies that have been present in past reporting and demonstrate the progress Sri Lanka can make. Fiscal and monetary policies will be spelled out…
Interview

Ajit Gunewardene, Deputy Chairman, John Keells Holdings: Interview
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Interview:Ajit Gunewardene What do major mixed-use developments mean for Colombo’s development? AJIT GUNEWARDENE: The mixed-use Cinnamon Life development is the largest private-sector investment in Sri Lanka to date, and it aims to capitalise on the growing numbers of tourist arrivals. Even though there have been noteworthy improvements in relation to general infrastructure and flight connectivity,…
Interview

Kabir Hashim, Minister of Public Enterprise Development: Interview
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Interview: Kabir Hashim What are the immediate priorities when it comes to reorganising the state sector? KABIR HASHIM: The most important thing is recognising that the very mandate of this new ministry is not just to run state-owned enterprises (SOEs) but to restructure them. The main objective is to reduce the burden SOEs bear upon the treasury. We have a large number that are major liabilities…
Interview

Mohan Pandithage, Chairman and Chief Executive, Hayleys: Interview
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Interview: MohanPandithage What factors have contributed to the declining contribution of exports to GDP? MOHAN PANDITHAGE: Sri Lanka’s exports have been characterised by two important features in the last couple of decades: limited diversification of products and limited diversification of markets. Around 60% of Sri Lanka’s exports are concentrated in the EU and US markets, while two products…
Interview

Arjuna Mahendran, Governor, Central Bank of Sri Lanka: Interview
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Interview:Arjuna Mahendran To what extent should one be concerned by Sri Lanka’s current foreign reserve profile? ARJUNA MAHENDRAN: Sri Lanka’s current reserve number is indeed something many analysts are looking at with a degree of concern. This is really linked with the whole economic model that was in place in the country until the end of 2014. Under this model, the government did the…
Interview

Rajeeva Bandaranaike, CEO, Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE): Interview
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Interview:Rajeeva Bandaranaike What measures can be taken to reach the CSE’s market capitalisation target of $50bn? RAJEEVA BANDARANAIKE: Given the government’s current GDP growth projections, the country’s capital markets will have to play a significant role in acting as a catalyst for raising funds. We estimate that 25-30% of funding requirements in the future will come through capital…
Interview

Dilshan Wirasekara, CEO, First Capital Holdings: Interview
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Interview:Dilshan Wirasekara Do you expect Sri Lanka to follow the downward trends that are hurting other emerging markets? DILSHAN WIRASEKARA: Despite some negative elements, the markets are relatively shielded, as most investments are domestic. The anticipated rate hike and the Chinese economic slowdown have already had an indirect impact on Sri Lanka in terms of outflows in equity and bond…
Interview

Damayanthi Fernando, Director-General, Insurance Board of Sri Lanka (IBSL): Interview
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Interview:Damayanthi Fernando To what extent do you expect market restructuring following the rollout of new regulations? DAMAYANTHI FERNANDO: With major regulatory reforms introduced by IBSL, we expect the insurance industry to be more robust, competitive and manage its business affairs in an efficient manner to add greater value for its stakeholders. One of the reforms introduced is the segregation…