Sri Lanka’s internet subscriptions jump 50% in pandemic year

Sri Lankans who subscribed for new internet connections rose at a phenomenal speed during the year through March 2021 as the pandemic upended how people work, learn, entertain and shop when in-person activities were significantly limited by the restrictions imposed to contain the 
virus spread. 

According to Central Bank data, the number of internet connections which comprise both fixed lines and mobile broadband connection rose from 13.1 million by the end of the first quarter in 2020—at the onset of the pandemic—to 19.4 million a year later, logging a whopping 48.1 percent increase. 

It is the highest ever increase in internet penetration in a span of a year as the pandemic-forced new normal added a flywheel to an otherwise gradual uptake in new connections. 

With the latest data, Sri Lanka appears to be not too far from digitally powering its entire population of 21 million, which could happen in the not so distant future as in-person dealings will continue to remain limited owing to how the authorities would respond to the pandemic.

However, asymmetries still exist in the access to quality internet and the affordability of related devices in certain parts of the country as seen from the numerous hardships experienced by students who have been deprived of their in-school learning for over a year due to inaction by the authorities to devise a strategy to safely bring them back to schools. 

Telecommunication services providers became the biggest winners of the pandemic due to limited in-person contacts, stoking a huge demand for data services. 

People and institutions also increasingly invested in computers, laptops and smartphones to remain connected with their family and friends, employers, customers and teachers as seen from the soaring sales reported by consumer electronics retailers, specially on their IT hardware products. 

The internet service providers also have offered attractive data packages catering to people’s evolving needs.