Regional rivalries over Sri Lanka’s ports

When it comes to Sri Lanka’s national security and sovereignty, nothing seems more guaranteed to generate heated discussion than the spectre of foreign involvement in seaport developments. After years of wrangling, Sri Lanka, India and Japan finally signed a Memorandum of Cooperation on May 28, 2019, to develop the strategically-located Colombo Port’s East Container Terminal (ECT). But the ink was barely dry when disputes broke out again about th

Paving the way for economic and tourism revival

Sri Lanka’s peace dividend that was taken for granted didn’t last long. As the country geared up to celebrate a decade since the end of the 30-year ethnic war came the Easter attacks that shook the nation.

Presidential Election 2020: Who has the best story?

The most poignant scene in final episode of Game of Thrones was the discourse of Westeros leaders on future leaders of seven kingdoms. With Cersei, Jamie and Daenerys gone and Jon Snow jailed, it would not be an easy task. Probably as the former hand of previous queen, Tyrion is given his say. Still a prisoner and with his hands in chains he raises the critical question.

OPPO strengthens position in premium segment launching Reno series in Sri Lanka

Reiterating its commitment to consumer-centric approach, OPPO has introduced its new brand identity that focuses on quality, craftsmanship and uniqueness in every detail.

Hutch debuts ‘Common Card’ for 078/072 customers

Twitter apologises for suspending accounts critical of China

(Beijing) AFP: Twitter has apologised for suspending a number of accounts critical of China, days before the politically sensitive 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown.

G20 digital tax takes step closer

(Paris) AFP: Global efforts to impose a unified tax policy on Google, Facebook and other internet giants have cleared a major hurdle ahead of a G20 summit in Japan, officials said Friday.

Daraz appoints Rakhil Fernando as MD

Daraz, an Alibaba Company, the pioneer of e-commerce in South Asia has announced the appointment of Rakhil Fernando as Managing Director of Daraz Sri Lanka, effective 1 June 2019.

Telecoms giant EE launches Britain’s first 5G services

(London) AFP: British mobile phone operator EE on Thursday became the first in the country to launch a high-speed 5G service, but without smartphones from controversial Chinese technology giant Huawei.

Apple defends App Store amid mounting criticism

AFP: Apple Inc last week publicly defended its App Store from mounting criticism over its treatment of rivals in a new blog post detailing its functions and guidelines.

BOC first State bank to receive GHG verification statement

The Bank of Ceylon (BOC) has been awarded a third party Greenhouse Gas (GHG) verification statement by The Sustainable Future Group (Pvt) Ltd., after verifying that the bank’s scope 1 and 2 Greenhouse Gas emissions for the reporting period of 1st September 2017 to 31st August 2018 in accordance with ISO 14064-1:2006 at a ‘reasonable level of assurance’.

Fairfirst Insurance contributes to Batticaloa’s Zion Church

The leadership team of Fairfirst Insurance met up with Pastor Roshan Maheshan on May 14th.

Ceylon Biscuits’ Munchee community work projects gather more momentum

Galenbindunuwewa, a remote area in North Central Sri Lanka, in the Anuradhapura district, home to a community of about 120 families, was the most recent beneficiary of the ‘Munchee Samaga Gamata Sarana’ community programme designed to uplift the living standards of our rural people.

Link contributes to ecological conservation of Adam’s Peak region

Striving to promote the use of ‘Preventive platforms’ rather than a ‘Curative platforms’– the brand philosophy of Samahan, a product of Link Natural Products (Pvt) Ltd launched a holistic programme themed ‘Asiri Surakimu Samanola’, to solve the plastic waste crisis in Adam’s Peak (Sri Pada).

Mukesh Ambani – Leader with a bold foresight

Mukesh Ambani (born April 19, 1957) is an Indian business magnate and the largest shareholder of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), which is a Fortune Global 500 company.

Cigarette tax indexation, getting it right and getting it wrong

Cigarette taxation in Sri Lanka is much in need of more professional management. This is not surprising – much of the government is in need of the same.

World No Tobacco Day: Sri Lanka must strengthen its real performance

World No Tobacco Day falls today (May 31), with the global campaign converging to combat the harmful impacts of tobacco use and second-hand smoke.

Risky Business: Separating criminals from job creators

Measures to prevent criminals and terrorists from exploiting the global financial system often have unintended consequences in the form of less access to credit for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in vulnerable regions like the Pacific.

Keeping track of our State enterprises

The Sri Lankan government is currently in the rather confused state of having lost track of the number of State enterprises it runs. While the Ministry of Finance tracks the financials of 55 key SOEs, the government does not have an official number for the enterprises it runs.

Lessons from Cu Chi tunnels for a contemporary CEO/Leader

It has been 17 years since I last visited Vietnam. I had planned my revisit to this easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula long before the Easter bombing disasters, so it was a trip I had to take.

Trash talk: Dealing with marine plastic pollution in Sri Lanka’s oceans

If current marine plastic pollution trends continue, the ocean will contain more plastic than fish by 2050, predicts the World Economic Forum report The New Plastics Economy. The Ocean Conservancy estimates that over 150 million metric tons of plastic are currently circulating in the ocean,while another eight million metric tons are added annually.

Can cyber-era terrorism be fought with ‘gal-katas’ technology?

A photo showing a ‘cop’ checking the sack of ‘terrorist suspect’ for ‘explosives’ went viral over past weeks. The ‘cop’ was a boy of about 17 years old in his all white school uniform, conspicuously displaying the badge of a prefect.

It’s bloody unfair!

Today is Menstrual Hygiene Day. Most of you might not be aware of it because in Sri Lanka, we pretend that women don’t bleed. Poor menstrual hygiene is caused by a lack of education on the issue, persisting taboos and stigma, limited access to hygienic menstrual products and poor sanitation infrastructure that undermines the educational opportunities, health and overall social status of women and girls around the world. As a result, millions of w

Do we hold too much cash?

After being de-sensitised for many years by virtually zero interest rates, one can suddenly earn a positive yield on cash again in many major currencies.

India’s Elections making history

Thursday saw general elections results for 543 seats of the 17th lower house of India’s national Parliament re-enforcing most of the preceding Exit Poll predictions that had already set television screens on fire since Monday morning.

Proposed steel plant inconsistent with Trincomalee Development Master Plan

If there was one characteristic that could define the four and a half years of the ‘Yahapalanaya’ government, it would be ‘Inconsistency in Policy’.

Eva Chen – the high-flying visionary leader

Eva Yi-Hwa Chen, usually referred to as Eva Chen, is a Taiwanese businessperson and the co-founder and CEO of Trend Micro, the world’s largest security firm.Currently she is graded as one of the top 100 most influential executives in the industry and also as one of Asia’s 50 Power Businesswomen.

Market promotion need of the hour for apparel industry: SLAEA Chair

Sri Lanka’s apparel industry led by the Joint Apparel Association Forum Sri Lanka (JAAF) recently rolled out an image-building media campaign aiming to transform the negative stereotypes on the female employees in the apparel industry, with a view to give the due recognition to female labour. In an interview with Mirror Business, Sri Lanka Apparel Exporters Association (SLAEA) Chairman Rehan Lakhani, on behalf of the country’s apparel industry,

Foraging through fresh frontiers of pharmaceutical innovation

For centuries, human beings have waged a relentlessbattle againsta litany of diseases that have ravaged countless generations.

What comes next in US–China trade war?

The escalation of tit-for-tat tariffs between the United States and China is now in the danger zone. Surely, reason will ultimately prevail. At least that is the common refrain in the echo chamber, especially in light of the dark history of earlier trade wars.