Author: Rohan Samarajiva

July 09, 2012 (LBO) – A few weeks back I wrote that the government is subsidizing a known carcinogen, diesel, pointing specifically to the lumbering, noxious-exhaust-spewing diesel three wheelers. I was then only talking about subsidies on diesel fuel. I’d been thinking it would be nice to support my argument with some data. Then I […]

June 25, 2012 (LBO) – If Sri Lanka is to achieve transformative, inclusive growth, it needs to have 7 percent plus growth for several consecutive years. It is well recognized by knowledgeable people, including key decision makers within government, that this would require around one billion dollars in new investment every year. This quantum cannot […]

June 18, 2012 (LBO) – Health is not a topic that is routinely covered in this column. I am not writing about health per se, but about subsidies that harm health. Petroleum industries minister Anura Yapa said the agency is also collecting arrears from state agencies including Ceylon Electricity Board, SriLankan Airlines and had started […]

May 30, 2012 (LBO) – Bangladesh is upset because India is about to sign a free trade agreement with the European Union. Its mission in Brussels has been instructed to monitor developments and it appears that the issue is being discussed bilaterally as well. Once India signs the agreement, India’s apparel exports to Europe will […]

Apr 17, 2012 (LBO) – The headline of a popular Sinhala language daily on 16 April 2012 screamed that 18 people had died in road accidents over the three days of Avurudu. I sympathize with the families and friends of the people who died, but this really does not merit a banner headline. For the […]

Apr 12, 2012 (LBO) – In theory, national governments should issue tsunami watches and warnings. For sure, they should be the only ones issuing evacuation orders. But social media are upending government control. Sri Lanka is not located in an earthquake zone. So when those of us who felt the tremors, our first reactions were […]

Mar 26, 2012 (LBO) – I like the fact that the present government gets things done. The planning for the Southern Expressway started in 1988. It was completed in 2011, over budget, a few years late and with some shortcomings. But, most importantly, it was completed. Construction on the airport expressway started in the early […]

Mar 05, 2012 (LBO) – With some difficulty, given high hotel prices and uncertainty around visas, we organized a regional workshop that drew participants from as far as Canada and South Africa. The electronic visa facility was greatly appreciated by the attendees. They found the airport experience satisfactory. First impressions were good. We should be […]

Jan 30, 2012 (LBO) – Reforms have costs. In any system, there are those who benefit from the status quo. Former President Kumaratunge once said in a speech that it used to cost 32,000 rupees to get a phone connection before the reforms. No idea how she found the number, but it seemed a reasonable […]

Nov 25, 2011 (LBO) – In most countries, visa fees are set through subordinate legislation. In Sri Lanka, it comes in the National Budget, read by the President, after more than a year of public vacillation. The end result is good, but the process was atrocious. It’s case study of how not to do public […]

Nov 23, 2011 (LBO) – Recently, the Government of Sri Lanka announced that it will charge 50 US dollars per person from every foreigner entering Sri Lanka, except for citizens of Singapore and Maldives who could come in for free. It was then reported that the rates would be rolled back to USD 10 for […]

Nov 06, 2011 (LBO) – The government is paying a price for advancing a bill to expropriate private enterprises at a time when it wants to attract more foreign investment and to induce domestic investors to commit more resources to productive economic activities. In addition to the negative signals sent by the Bill itself, the […]