At the time of writing this article, we have completed 5 weeks of curfew and lockdown in Sri Lanka due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The overall economy has been impacted due to this pandemic with small businesses being hit the most.

The COVID-19 pandemic has already claimed thousands of lives worldwide. As expected with any respiratory illness, there is clear evidence that smokers are much more vulnerable to COVID-19 than non-smokers.

I have been saying for a while that this is a “crisis like no other”. It is:

Educating girls is very important for a prosperous world. It has a snowballing effect as according to USAID, educated women are twice as likely to send their children to school. This increases the chances of girls being educated in future as well.

Just over a year ago, InvestChile – the South American country’s Foreign Direct Investment Promotion Agency – welcomed 300 foreign investors of 21 nationalities in Santiago. In a two-day event, they attended plenaries, workshops and over 200 me

Seven years ago, one of the worst industrial disasters in history — the collapse of an eight-story commercial building in Rana Plaza, Dhaka — demonstrated to the world the heavy price of producing cheap clothing to fuel the ‘fast fashion’ ind

Asia was hit hard by the first wave of the coronavirus, as the sudden stop in activity struck households and firms simultaneously—first in China, then elsewhere in Asia and now globally. Policymakers responded swiftly with aggressive spending to su

Over the past few months, educational institutions around the world – from elementary schools to colleges and universities – have been forced to embrace distance learning. It’s now estimated that 70 percent of students are currently doing some

The fear of contagion has struck deep and some things will perhaps never go back to the way they were. Here are some possible narratives and changing paradigms that could emerge in a post-COVID-19 world:

I am penning this as a matter of urgency and I concede I could develop the arguments and points better. I consider this an urgent appeal to the president to read it and find a solution, which will save not only jobs but the economy.

Kantar recently unveiled the COVID-19 Barometer for Sri Lanka through a virtual webinar. The study covers the sentiments of both urban and rural households across all socio-economic groups and age segments.

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in many countries having lockdowns, mainly to control the spread of the coronavirus. This pandemic, which started in Wuhan, China, has now spread worldwide, with Europe and America experiencing a major impact and hu

Sri Lanka has been under curfew since mid-March to contain the spread of COVID-19. As a result, economic activities throughout the country have stalled. A recent Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) blog identified that non-agricultural, informal worker

Now is the time to ramp up actions on resilience so that society can beat the COVID-19 crisis while reducing the impact of climate threats.

The current ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has brought tourism and leisure travel to its knees. With extended curfews and strict restrictions of movement, almost all establishments have been shut.

The purpose of this article is to suggest how Sri Lanka can benefit from the obvious need for social support in the context of ‘COVID-19’.

The economic and labour crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic has increased global unemployment by almost 25 million, according to a new assessment by the International Labour Organization (ILO).

Over the last few weeks, there have been many discussions, ideas and content on the impact of COVID-19 on businesses and the economy in particular.

No data yet, apart from the distressing data on the escalating infections and deaths caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. The economic shock is yet to be seen.

The growing pressure on Sri Lanka’s scarce foreign exchange resources, due to the wide spread of COVID-19 across the globe, is now more real than ever before. To ease this pressure, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has taken many measures to at

The purpose of this article is to suggest how Sri Lanka can undertake significant structural reforms in the aftermath of this global pandemic and place herself in a position of increased economic strength.

International Chamber of Commerce Sri Lanka (ICCSL) Chairman Dinesh Weerakkody speaks about the International Chamber of Commerce’s (ICC) global response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) to provide businesses with hope during these challenging times.

As the deadly COVID-19 pandemic threatens the entire world, claiming thousands of lives and disrupting economic activities, it would be wise to look at the role smoking cessation could play in the response.

After the April 2019 terrorist attack in Sri Lanka, the Market Development Facility (MDF), an Australian multi-country initiative, launched a series of informative seminars across the country to help the smaller scale hotel companies understand how t

Sri Lanka, as a developing country, is highly sensitive to both internal and external shocks. Today, Sri Lanka is facing a big challenge of controlling the spread of COVID-19, which is a global pandemic. Even though Sri Lanka is far better than other

National policymakers have been grappling on the right balance between lockdowns (total or partial) and maintaining a functioning economy to safeguard the livelihood of its citizens and viability of its corporate sector. Whilst no solution seems opti

With the impacts of the pandemic on food and nutrition being felt around the region, planning is needed to avoid higher food prices, decreased nutrition and reduced food security.

As of April 6, 2020, there are 177 confirmed cases and five deaths attributed to the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Sri Lanka. These are impressive statistics relative to those in many other countries affected by COVID-19. Physical distancing is the key t

As of April 6, 2020, there are 177 confirmed cases and five deaths attributed to the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Sri Lanka. These are impressive statistics relative to those in many other countries affected by COVID-19. Physical distancing is the key t

According to CNN, the coronavirus (COVID-19) is now in 85 countries. This is despite four countries still accounting for 97 percent of COVID-19 cases. The COVID-19 epidemic has now forced nearly one-third of the world’s population into lockdown. It