Category: Special Reports
Sri Lanka detects first Omicron variant case
Sri Lanka’s Health Promotion Bureau has confirmed that the first case of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus was detected in Sri Lanka. Accordingly, a Sri Lankan who returned from Nigeria on the 23 of November has been tested positive for COVID-19 new variant Omicron.
U.S. donates nearly 200,000 additional Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines to Sri Lanka
Nearly 200,000 additional Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine doses arrived in Sri Lanka today as a donation from the American people. This gift demonstrates the ongoing commitment of the United States to support Sri Lanka in the fight against COVID-19. As the pandemic continues and new variants emerge, the United States continues to partner with the Sri Lankan Ministry […]
What really is a Sovereign Debt Restructuring Process?
This information note explains the sovereign debt restructuring process which is based on a document released by the IMF as the first comprehensive attempt to describe each step of the process. Introduction All sovereign debt workouts are painful — for the debtor country, its citizens, its creditors and its official sector sponsors. If mishandled, a […]
Ceylon Chamber of Commerce joins global movement to end gender-based violence
The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce pledges to join the fight to end gender-based violence by joining the global campaign “Orange the World: 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence’. In Sri Lanka, the first dedicated national survey on violence against women and girls, the Women’s Wellbeing Survey, revealed that two in five women were subjected […]
US Delivers USD 150Mn in Financing to DFCC Bank to Support Community-Based Women Entrepreneurs
The United States government disbursed USD 150 million in financing to DFCC Bank on November 12 to support sustainable development of Sri Lankan community-based businesses. This is the largest loan disbursement by the U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC) for Sri Lanka, and it is part of a USD 265 million commitment designed to support the local Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise […]
Germany pledges to convert Euro 13mn Loan into a Grant for completing New Maternity Hospital
Strengthening the long standing close partnership between the Government of Germany and the Government of Sri Lanka, German Government proposed to convert the supplementary loan obtained from the German KfW bank for completing the New Maternity Hospital (Teaching) Galle into a grant. Accordingly, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, S R Attygalle, Head of Division, […]
CA Sri Lanka launches virtual career guidance sessions to reconnect with students
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) recently launched a virtual career guidance session aimed at reconnecting with lapsed students. The session titled “Reset – Refresh – Renew” targeted CA students who dropped out mid-way during the programme. During the highly interactive session, students were educated on the importance of […]
Sri Lanka completes vaccination for over 60-pct of population
The Deputy Director General of Health Services, Dr. Hemantha Herath says that over 60% of the total population in Sri Lanka has been fully vaccinated as per the latest statistics. According to him, nearly 70% of the people have been given the first dose of any vaccine. Dr. Herath said that they are targeting 70% […]
Sri Lanka & Thailand hold high-powered talks to explore mutually beneficial investment corridors
To further enhance and expand investment corridors between Sri Lanka and Thailand, the Embassy and Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka in Bangkok, together with the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka and China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd, co-hosted a high-powered dialogue by inviting leading line agencies and trade chambers of […]
United States to support conservation of historical Kandy monuments
The United States government, through the U.S. Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP), has awarded a grant to conserve a 17th century Royal Palace and Archaeology Museum in Kandy. Funding for the project totals over 52 million Sri Lankan rupees ($265,000). Since 2001, AFCP has funded 14 projects in Sri Lanka, including the conservation of […]
European Union & WHO provide critical support to Sri Lanka as pandemic continues
Critical emergency medical equipment has been made available to 78 hospitals across the country for the COVID-19 response through a partnership between the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union (EU). These include high dependency unit (HDU) beds, finger pulse oximeters, oxygen concentrators, oxygen jumbo cylinders, and other urgent supplies. The supplies are part […]
Next consignment of AstraZeneca to arrive on Saturday: Japanese Ambassador to Sri Lanka
Japanese Ambassador Akira Sugiyama says following the personal request of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to the Prime Minister of Japan Yoshihide Suga, the next batch of AstraZeneca vaccines donated by the Government of Japan will arrive in the island next Saturday (07). The Japanese Ambassador made this remark while officially handing over the stock of AstraZeneca […]