Dec 15 (FT) Workers’ remittances during the first 11 months have crossed the $ 7 billion mark, aided by a record $ 673.4 million inflow in Nov 2025. November inflow represents a robust 27% year-on-year (YoY) increase, extending a series of record monthly performances seen this year. Despite easing slightly from October’s $ 712 million, November’s inflows remained significantly stronger than historical benchmarks. Cumulatively, workers’ remittances for the first 11 months of 2025 surpassed more..

Dec 15 (FT) SL’s tourism sector continued to struggle to translate rising visitor arrivals into stronger economic returns, with earnings in November 2025 falling sharply despite a record influx of tourists. Tourism earnings in November declined 8.5% year-on-year (YoY) to $ 251.6 million, highlighting a growing disconnect between arrival volumes and actual visitor spending. November performance also remains well below pre-crisis benchmarks. In Nov 2018, SL earned $ 367.1 million from tourism, more..

Dec 15 (FT) As the Govt engages in post-Ditwah recovery efforts, for which it is seeking an additional Rs. 550 billion spending bill along with additional IMF financing, data for the first 10 months of 2025 showed SL’s fiscal performance continued to strengthen, with the Budget deficit contracting by nearly 60% from a year ago and the primary surplus exceeding Rs. 1.6 trillion. Govt’s Budget deficit for the first 10 months of 2025 reached Rs. 455.77 billion, down 57% from more..

Dec 15 (FT) Aitken Spence Travels marked a significant milestone with the handling of The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s first call to the ports of Colombo and Galle on 14 and 15 Dec. This inaugural visit reflects Aitken Spence’s ongoing efforts to introduce world renowned, ultra-luxury cruise brands to Sri Lanka, elevating the country’s profile within the high-end global cruise travel segment, and establishing Sri Lanka as the ideal multiport destination for luxury travellers. more..

Dec 15 (FT) Total private sector borrowings in October 2025 spiked to a record Rs. 246.10 billion, resulting in the total outstanding amount reaching Rs. 9.76 trillion, up 24.1% from a year ago. This is the highest monthly private sector borrowing this year after Rs. 236 billion in September, followed by Rs. 227 billion in August. According to the latest Central Bank of SL (CBSL) data, domestic banking sector credit to the private sector in October amounted to Rs. 247.7 billion. more..

Dec 15 (FT) EDB Chairman Mangala Wijesinghe last week declared that SL’s export sector is poised for an era of unprecedented expansion, driven by innovation, value addition and renewed policy momentum, and the future is one of limitless potential rather than incremental recovery. He made this assertion during his speech at the 27th Presidential Export Awards Ceremony held at the BMICH with the participation of PM Harini Amarasuriya and Ministers Dr. Anil Jayantha and Sunil Handunneththi among others. more..

Dec 15 (FT) SL–Maldives Business Council (SLMLBC) has extended its deepest appreciation to the Govt and the people of the Maldives for the extraordinary solidarity and generosity extended to SL in the aftermath of the recent cyclone. SL received approximately $ 2 million in financial assistance and $ 1.2 million worth of tuna cans, contributed collectively by the Government of the Maldives, private sector institutions, Maldivian citizens, and the SL expatriate community in the Maldives. more..

Dec 15 (FT) Sri Lanka’s struggle to revive large-scale manufacturing industries affected by Cyclone Ditwah came under spotlight recently at a high-level review involving the Industry and Entrepreneurship Development Ministry and top corporates. The progress and challenges of Sri Lanka thus far were reviewed at the meeting bringing together leading companies under a public-private partnership framework chaired by Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe. more..

Dec 15 (Island) The manner in which the govt succeeded in mobilising support from the international community, immediately after the devastating impact of Cyclone Ditwah, may have surprised many people of this country, particularly because our Opposition politicians were ridiculing our inexperienced govt, in the recent past, for its inability to deal with the int'l community effectively. However, by now it is evident that the govt, with the assistance of the int'l community and more..

Dec 15 (Island) The govt hurriedly launched a social media campaign on Friday to gain political mileage out of the arrest of NPP MP Asoka Ranwala involved in a road accident. Its propagandists boasted that the rule of law had been restored, and everyone was now equal before the law. But they were left red-faced when Ranwala was granted bail soon afterwards. Worse, it was revealed that the police had not made Ranwala undergo an alcohol test immediately after the accident on Thursday night and more..

Dec 15 (ST) A grief stricken SL citizenry caught up in the immediate aftermath of a deadly cyclone that cracked the country’s green and verdant hills with potentially irreversible impact, cruelly swallowing up entire villages and their sleeping inhabitants like some giant medieval monster, was rocked by a cyclonic storm of legal consequences this week. That when the national media headlined the story of the acquittal of a former Governor of the CB indicted by the CIABOC for more..

Dec 15 (TM) In the aftermath of the cyclonic storm Ditwah, SL once again confronts a familiar but unresolved challenge. That is disaster response that prioritises immediate relief while neglecting the systems people need to rebuild their lives. As floodwaters recede and landslide risks subside, the real crisis for many affected families is not only the loss of homes and livelihoods, but also the loss of access to services and support. Across some of the worst flood affected and landslide prone areas, more..

Dec 15 (TM) Sri Lanka’s education system is among the casualties of Cyclone Ditwah, with severe damage to school and preschool infrastructure, while some have been converted into shelters, disrupting the resumption of learning nationwide. According to UNICEF’s Sri Lanka Situation Report of 5 December, “Over 1,185 schools across all nine provinces are located in flood-affected areas, affecting the learning of over half a million children.” more..

Dec 15 (DM) Cyclone Ditwah tore through Sri Lanka with a frightening force, leaving behind washed-out villages, broken roads, drowned fields, and thousands of families trying to rebuild their lives from the mud. But as the waters recede and statistics slowly replace human stories, one uncomfortable truth remains pertinent. Disasters like Ditwah do not fall from the sky fully formed. They are shaped long before the clouds gather, and the damage they cause is written into more..

Dec 15 (CT) Sri Lanka is facing a health crisis on top of a humanitarian emergency. As the country grapples with the aftermath of devastating floods caused by the recent monsoon and Cyclone Ditwah, another threat has emerged: a sharp rise in dengue fever cases. It is a wave that now risks drowning our recovery efforts in suffering, sickness and strain on an already fragile health system. The country has recorded 47,371 dengue cases and 24 dengue-related deaths so far in 2025. more..

Dec 15 (DM) Ambuluwawa’s iconic tower is under fresh scrutiny after Cyclone Ditwah triggered deadly landslides across the central highlands. Rockfalls, cracked roads and years of ignored warnings have intensified fears about the mountain’s stability. Officials raised these concerns directly with Prez last week, prompting a call for a full geotechnical audit. At the centre of the controversy is the Ambuluwawa Trust Act — criticised as feudal for granting hereditary control more..

Dec 15 (DM) There is a familiar sinking feeling Sri Lankans experience every time news breaks about a politician involved in a road accident or public incident allegedly linked to alcohol. It does not shock anymore. It is weary recognition, another headline, another explanation, another promise that the law will take its course. And then, almost inevitably, silence. The recent accident involving MP Asoka Ranwala has once again forced the country to confront an uncomfortable truth. This is not about one individual alone. more..

Dec 15 (DM) The following is a keynote address delivered by Prof. G.L. Peiris at the Int'l Research Conference of the Faculty of Law, Uni of Colombo held on Dec 12. One of the great challenges of modern public law is to reconcile traditional principles relating to the rule of law and the separation of powers with the exigencies of crises which threaten the destruction of society itself. To what extent must protective mechanisms developed by systems of law over the ages give way to the need for more..

Dec 14 (ST) In the wake of the widespread destruction caused by Cyclone Ditwah, the country has had to depend heavily on the generosity and goodwill of its friends and partners in the international community. While India was the first to step in to provide much-needed assistance for the rescue and recovery work in areas devastated by the floods and landslides, China, US, Pakistan, Russia, UAE were among others that rushed more..

Dec 14 (ST) The CIABOC is considering whether to call two of the accused who were discharged from the Greek bonds case as prosecution witnesses in a fresh case to be filed against former Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal, should he fail to pay back the estimated loss to the state within three months. This comes as the Commission mulls bringing a fresh indictment against Mr Cabraal and amid moves by his lawyers to make legal representations regarding the condition more..

Dec 14 (ST) A US Special Operations team boarded a cargo ship in the Indian Ocean, several hundred miles off the coast of SL, and seized military-related articles headed to Iran from China, the Wall Street Journal has reported. The incident had occurred last month and was a rare interdiction operation at sea aimed at blocking Iran from rebuilding its military arsenal, the WSJ reported on Friday. It said the troops attached to the US Indo-Pacific Command carried out the raid on the ship more..

Dec 14 (AD) President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has instructed officials to give top priority to restoring the livelihoods of communities affected by the disaster. He emphasized the need to expedite compensation payments for damages and to take immediate measures to revive the agriculture, fisheries, and industrial sectors. Prez further directed that all compensation payments for crop damage more..

Dec 14 (SO) Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious & Cultural Affairs will renovate, rebuild and relocate over 1,000 temples, churches, mosques and kovils damaged by Cyclone Ditwah – the country’s largest post-disaster religious reconstruction program. Ministry sources said the initiative follows direct orders from Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake to the Ministry to fast-track repairs to damaged religious sites across all nine provinces. Minister Dr. Hiniduma Sunil Senevi yesterday said that more..

Dec 14 (SM) The Parliament of SL will convene on Dec 18, at 9.30 a.m., Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne announced. Speaker said the House was summoned through an Extraordinary Gazette issued under Standing Order 16 of Parliament, following a request made by PM Harini Amarasuriya. Meanwhile, SLPP MP Namal Rajapaksa has also made a written request to the PM, urging that Parliament be convened urgently to take necessary measures to provide relief to people affected more..

Dec 14 (DM) Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama yesterday imposed a compensation order of Rs. 50,000 and a fine of Rs. 5,000 on a young girl, after she pleaded guilty to digitally altering several photographs of a young woman from the Colombo area into obscene images and circulating them on the internet. Magistrate ordered the accused to pay a fine of Rs. 2,500 and compensation of Rs. 25,000 for each of the two separate charges, extracting the victim’s more..

Dec 14 (NW) 26 suspects, including four women, were arrested with narcotics after police raided a social media-organised party, Teldaniya Police said. The raid was carried out in the early hours of today (13) at a hotel near the Victoria Reservoir, within the Teldaniya Police area, where the party was being held. Police recovered 4,134 milligrams of ice (crystal meth), 1,875 milligrams of hashish, 2,769 milligrams of kush, 390 milligrams of cocaine, 804 milligrams of mushrooms, more..

Dec 14 (TM) An inquiry had been initiated into the conduct of a Sapugaskanda Police officer for not administering a breathalyser test or producing the suspect – NPP MP Asoka Ranwala – before a Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) in accordance with standard protocol, Police Media Spokesperson ASP F.U. Wootler confirmed yesterday. He said disciplinary action would be taken against the officer concerned for failing to more..

Dec 14 (DM) The previous govt completed the concept paper for the establishment of an international climate change university in Sri Lanka, and a Cabinet paper was presented at that time to seek approval for land demarcation for the project, an official attached to the then Climate Change secretariat said. He said several rounds of discussions were held with foreign experts in the field. Minister of Environment Dammika Patabedi said he had no clear idea of the proposal, more..

Dec 14 (AD) Ministry of Industry & Enterprise Development has reported that the Industry Disaster Support Center (IDSC) has received data on 13,698 businesses affected by the recent adverse weather conditions in SL. Ministry provided a breakdown of the affected businesses reported to the Disaster Support Centre: Micro-scale businesses: 5,639; Small-scale businesses: 4,636; Medium-scale businesses: 2,986; Large-scale businesses: 437. Ministry has introduced the telephone number more..

Dec 14 (DM) US Prez Donald Trump’s nominee for ambassador to SL has told lawmakers that Washington will focus on maritime security, economic reforms and countering China’s expanding influence in the Indian Ocean, as SL continues its recovery from the 2022 economic crisis and a deadly cyclone this year. Testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, nominee Eric Meyer said SL’s strategic position along more..

Dec 14 (TM) The Govt is urgently pursuing official information regarding the reported detention of crew members, including SL nationals, aboard a foreign-flagged oil tanker seized by Iranian authorities in the Gulf of Oman, according to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Arun Hemachandra. “Our embassies in Tehran and Muscat have reached out to the respective authorities seeking official information. We are awaiting further feedback, and appropriate steps will be taken in accordance with more..

Dec 14 (AD) Treasury Secretary, Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, says that the Treasury has so far disbursed more than Rs. 13 billion to provide relief to the people affected by the disaster situation. “Our objective is to further strengthen the mechanism to share this information as early as possible as to what are the amount of funding that we are receiving,” he said. He detailed that all the financial aid received by the country at this moment is collected to the Treasury and more..