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Sri Lanka has earned USD 4.4 billion from tourism earnings in 2018, up 11.6% from USD 3.9 billion in 2017, the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority stated in a press release.

The data suggests that an average duration of stay per person is 11 days in Sri Lanka, while the daily average expenditure is 174 US Dollars, accounting to approximately 2,000 US Dollars during their entire stay.

The Industry ‘s expectations for 2019 are 3 million tourist arrivals and a revenue of 5 billion US Dollars with Lonely Planet naming Sri Lanka as the No.1 destination to travel in 2019.

India, China and Britain have managed to remain as the leading markets throughout the year 2018 as well.

Meanwhile the number of visitors to Sri Lanka went up 3.55 year-on-year to 253,169 in December 2018, after a 16.8 percent rise during the previous month.

Visitors from Asia and Pacific accounted for 47% of total tourists visiting Sri Lanka and Europe accounted for 43 percent of the total.

Almost 97% of tourists travelled by air to Sri Lanka and major sources of tourist traffic to Sri Lanka, were seen from Germany (37.1% to 16,624); the UK (+23.3% to 26,828) and Sweden (+16.6% to 6,834).

A delegation comprising officials from the Sri Lankan Tourism Ministry will visit Tel Aviv to participate in the International Mediterranean Tourism Market [IMTM] to be held from February 12-13 at the Tel Aviv Convention Centre, the Jerusalem Post reports. 

The IMTM is a is a leading tourism event that marks the immense presence of tourism services and solutions, tour operating services, tour planning services, budget tours, packaged tour services, tour related accessories and essentials and all services and solutions that are associated with the tourism industry. It brings together all professionals from the tourism industry and introduces new attractions and tourist destinations.

The Ministry of Tourism said that around 10,000 tourists visit the island nation each year and that their goal for 2019 is to increase the number of Israeli tourists by 20%.

The Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment (VIR), extended its joint welfare patronage with the VIR Seva Vanitha Unit to children of fallen war heroes, wounded veterans and a few serving VIR personnel during a donation project, staged at the 'Salute' VIR Reception Hall in Boyagane on Saturday (19).
 
162 students received packs of school accessories, educational aids, uniforms, shoes and sports goods. A special feature was the donation of 13 artificial limbs, including custom designed limbs that can be used for sports. Similarly, a vision-impaired daughter of a VIR soldier received a Braille educational system on the same occasion.

Philippine president Duterte and Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena reaffirmed the almost six-decade relations between the countries during their meeting in Malacañang Thursday. Sirisena arrived in Manila last Tuesday for a five-day state visit on the invitation of the Philippine president.

In their joint statement, President Duterte said he is pleased to welcome Sirisena to the country. Sirisena is the first Sri Lankan president serving as head of state and government to ever visit the Philippines in 58 years.

In his remarks, Duterte recognized the similarities that the two Asian countries share.

“The Philippines and Sri Lanka are developing maritime nations. We face common challenges, we have shared interests, and we are united by our desire to provide greater peace, progress and prosperity for our peoples,” Duterte said Thursday evening.

“These realities and aspirations behoove upon us to work together even more closely to provide renewed impetus and clearer direction for a greatly expanded partnership,” he added.

During their private meeting, Duterte said he and Sirisena resolved to further strengthen the two countries’ engagement in trade, defense, agriculture, tourism, education, and cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

Both leaders also recognized the proliferation of illegal drugs is a threat to the people and the growing societies. They also acknowledged that poverty reduction and long-term sustainable development are important to improve the lives of their citizens.

Duterte and Sirisena also discussed mutual concerns on strengthening cooperation in defense and security.

“We know that the growth we desire can only be achieved with peace, order and stability. This state of affairs is to be desired not only for both our countries but across the region,” Duterte said.

The two presidents also renewed their commitment to adhere to the rule of law, act as responsible members of the international community, and to work together constructively in all relevant regional and international organizations.

According to Duterte, working with a like-minded country like Sri Lanka will ensure that the interests of both countries are protected and upheld.

“The Philippines hopes that with Sri Lanka, we can explore wider cooperation and greater collaborative action [across] many fields in the international fora,” Duterte said.

“The Philippines recognizes [that] Sri Lanka can be a partner in advancing migrant workers’ rights and welfare; disaster risk reduction, response and management; as well as in strengthening our maritime security and addressing the trafficking of illegal drugs and human smuggling,” he added.

5 Agreements Signed

In the Palace ceremony witnessed by the two leaders, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Department of National Defense and Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence on “Defense and Military Education and Training and Exchanges of Defense and Military Delegations.”

The MOU provides an initial framework for cooperation in the field of education and training, exchanges of delegations on the basis of reciprocity and mutual benefit.

Also, the two countries forged a memorandum of understanding on agriculture, fisheries and related fields. The accord aims to promote scientific, technical and economic cooperation in agriculture and expand Philippine-Sri Lanka cooperation in fisheries and related fields.

A MOU was signed to uplift the Agricultural cooperation between the two countries.Sri Lanka's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tilak Marapana (L) and Assistant Secretary of Philippines Department of Agriculture, Waldo Cerpro (R) signed on behalf of their respective governments. 

A memorandum of understanding on academic cooperation in higher Education was also signed between the Commission on Higher Education and Sri Lanka’s Ministry of City Planning, Water Supply, and Higher Education. It aims to promote cooperation in higher education and professional training including development of institutional linkages at the undergraduate level.

Another memorandum of understanding was sealed between the Department of Tourism and the Ministry of Tourism Development, Wildlife and Christian Religious Affairs of Sri Lanka. The agreement aims to strengthen cooperation on tourism infrastructure development and facilitate two-way travel and people-to-people exchanges.

Also signed was a memorandum of understanding between the University of the Philippines Los Baños and the Sri Lanka Council for Agriculture Research Policy of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Economic Affairs, Livestock, Irrigation, Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development (MAREALIFARD). It seeks to promote scientific research linkages between two institutions and arrange for post-graduate training of agricultural research staff.

Philippine Diplomatic Post in Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has endorsed the establishment of a Philippine embassy in Sri Lanka as the two nations moved to reinvigorate economic and security cooperation.

“The relationship between Sri Lanka and Philippines is a longstanding friendship,” the visiting Sri Lankan leader said at the start of expanded bilateral meeting with the President and his Cabinet.

“In order to strengthen the bilateral relations between the two countries, establishing a Philippine embassy in Sri Lanka would be highly instrumental. Therefore, your marking a plot of land for the Philippines’ embassy in Sri Lanka would be — necessary action will be taken expeditiously,” he said.

At present, the Philippines has an honorary consulate in Colombo, Sri Lanka under the supervision of the Philippine Embassy in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Duterte invited to visit Sri Lanka

Sirisena thanked Duterte for the opportunity of visiting the Philippines. The Sri Lankan leader, in turn, invited Duterte to undertake a state visit to Sri Lanka to see the fruits of their agreements and further advance them.

“I have extended an invitation to President Duterte to undertake a state visit to Sri Lanka at an early date,” Sirisena said.

“President Duterte, your visit to Sri Lanka will provide an opportunity to evaluate the progress of the initiatives which we have discussed during my visit. I look forward to welcome you and Madam Duterte,” he added.

In his remarks, Sirisena described his discussions with Duterte as “productive”, saying they are both pleased with the outcome of their bilateral meeting.

“We have agreed on several concrete initiatives to deepen our relations. Along with President Duterte, I and my government will ensure that these initiatives will be implemented in order to harness the maximum through the people of both countries,” the Sri Lankan President said.

Before ending his remarks, Sirisena said that he is pleased with his visit which strengthened the long and trusted friendship between the Philippines and Sri Lanka.

“I carry with me very fond memories of this state visit while further strengthening the friendship with your country,” Sirisena said.

Duterte said he and Sirisena were planting the seeds for rapid growth in bilateral relations.

“The Philippines’ destiny is in Asia. Sri Lanka’s destiny is also in Asia. Asia’s destiny lies among Asians,” he said.

“We are firm in our belief that with our commitment, we will reap a bountiful harvest for the benefit of our peoples,” he added.

The USD 350 million Indian housing project in Sri Lanka was extended to the Nuwara Eliya district with the handing over of 150 newly built houses to plantation families on Sunday (20).     

Dr. Shilpak N. Ambule, Deputy High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka was the chief gust at a special ceremony organized in connection with the vesting of ownership of these houses. 

The ceremony was held at Dayagama West Estate in Nuwara Eliya with Palani Digambaram, Minister for Hill Country New Villages, Infrastructure and Community Development and Gayantha Karunathilake, Minister of Lands and Parliamentary Reforms handing over the houses to the beneficiaries. 

The Deputy Indian High Commissioner in his remarks underscored that the Indian Housing Project in Sri Lanka with a grant of over US$ 350 million (close to 50 billion LKR), was the largest Indian grant assistance project in any country abroad. 

Alex Marshall, the International Cricket Council (ICC) anti corruption unit general manager has arrived in Sri Lanka to oversee the ongoing investigation against match fixing and corruption charges, Cricket Age reliably learns.

During his stay in Sri Lanka, Marshal is scheduled to meet Sports Minister Harin Fernando as well.

It is noteworthy that the ICC on January 10 announced a 15-day amnesty to participants who have previously failed to report any information concerning corrupt conduct in Sri Lankan cricket. The amnesty, which will run from 16-31 January, will apply to all participants under both the ICC and Sri Lankan Cricket Anti-Corruption codes.

Under these codes, both domestic and international participants are obliged to report, without delay, full details of any approaches, incident or information that they receive to engage in corrupt conduct. Failure to do so is a serious offence and can result in a ban from cricket of up to five years. However, under the amnesty, any information reported by a participant will not attract a charge for their failure to report previously.

“This is the first time the ICC has held an amnesty and it is in response to the very specific challenges we face in Sri Lanka. Allowing retrospective reporting of alleged approaches to engage in corrupt conduct will assist in our ongoing and wide-ranging investigations, as well as enabling us to continue to develop a comprehensive picture of the situation there” Alex Marshall had said  on January 10.

“If any player or participant has any information concerning corrupt conduct they should come forward and share it with us now without fear of any repercussions.

“We would urge any participant with any information that may demonstrate corrupt conduct affecting cricket in Sri Lanka to come forward in the strictest of confidence” he had added  further .

Reports can be made 24 hours a day in a number of ways:

ICC Integrity App, which is available for download by searching ‘ICC Integrity’ via the Apple ‘App Store’ or ‘Andriod Apps’

ICC ACU Hotline: +971 565 458909

ICC ACU e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The ICC also has an ACU representative based in Sri Lanka throughout the duration of the amnesty, who can be contacted using the same ICC Integrity App, ACU Hotline number or ACU e-mail address as detailed above.

If any participant requires further information regarding the details of the amnesty, they should contact the ICC using the methods detailed above.

Harin Fernando has also urged all SLC contracted players, employees, coaches and stakeholders to come clean in the coming two weeks if they had been approached, knew of or were involved in any form of corruption.

“This game, we all love, belongs to the cricketers who sweat it out day in day out, not to the officials at the board. They have named Sri Lanka as the most corrupt country playing cricket in the world, I felt really sad when ICC revealed those corruptions details. We need to clean this mess and reclaim our lost glory.” Minister Fernando had said on january 10 at the Sports Ministry Auditorium.

“The new anti-corruption laws in Sri Lanka will be presented to the Parliament in March. Then once it’s passed, we can start punishing the corrupt individuals with a five-year jail sentence. “


(Cricket Age)

The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and Sri Lanka inked a comprehensive work plan here on Friday to advance Sri Lanka's rice self-sufficiency goals through joint research for development projects in the next five years.

The Sri Lanka-IRRI five-year work plan will complement and help implement the new Sri Lanka National Plan for the Rice Sector, according to an IRRI statement.

It said the plan will serve as the framework for joint collaborative research for development pipeline projects aimed to enhance the resilience and viability of Sri Lanka's national rice sector.

The work plan will focus on developing high-yielding and climate resilient rice varieties with multiple tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses, genomics-based breeding technologies, nutritious and value-added rice, capacity building, and mechanization, among others.

The project proponents also plan to promote more robust seed systems, and sustainable farm management practices.

"Sri Lanka's rice sector has been challenged by the increasing impacts of climate change; stagnation in yield growth; high production and labor costs; low private sector investment; and poor mechanization and technology adoption among its farmers," the statement said.

According to the IRRI, Sri Lanka has been badly affected by extreme weather events recently. In 2017, as a result of floods and droughts in different parts of the south Asian country, there was a shortfall of 44 percent in the amount of rice needed by the country.

Sri Lanka president Maithripala Sirisena on Tuesday night arrived in the Philippines for a five-day state visit.

The president landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 past 10 p.m.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will hold a welcome ceremony for Sirisena at Malacañang on Wednesday.

The two leaders will then hold bilateral talks on "areas of mutual interest, including political, economic, cultural and people-to-people engagement."

President Sirisena is also scheduled to visit the Asian Development Bank in Mandaluyong, and the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños.

Sirisena's visit to Manila is the first by a Sri Lankan president serving as both head of state and government.

President Maithripala Sirisena praises Philippines over policy that has led to thousands of extrajudicial killing.

Protesters march following the death of teenager Kian Loyd delos Santos, a victim of Rodrigo Duterte’s drug war. Photograph: Erik de Castro/Reuters

Sri Lanka’s president has praised his Philippines counterpart Rodrigo Duterte’s brutal war on drugs, which has taken thousands of lives, calling it an “example to the world”.

In a speech during a visit to the Philippines this week, Maithripala Sirisena said he intended to replicate Duterte’s ruthless approach to tackling illegal drug use.

“The war against crime and drugs carried out by you is an example to the whole world, and personally to me,” said Sirisena. “Drug menace is rampant in my country and I feel that we should follow your footsteps to control this hazard.”

In his own statement, Duterte said that their aligned vision could mean partnering with Sri Lanka in the future to address international drug trafficking.

Duterte’s bloody war on drugs, which has seen police handed unprecedented powers to carry out drug-related raids and arrests, has officially killed more than 5,000 people since 2016, though campaigners allege the real death toll could be up to 20,000. Those who have died have mainly been the urban poor. The international criminal court (ICC) is carrying out a preliminary investigation into whether the extrajudicial killings constitute crimes against humanity.

Duterte has remained unrepentant about the scale of the deaths in the crackdown, saying he would promote police officers who “massacre” drug dealers and describing those killed as “just carcasses to me”.

The speech was not the first time Sirisena has signalled his admiration for Duterte’s war on drugs. In July, Sri Lanka ended its 43-year moratorium on executions to bring back hanging as a punishment for drug dealers, a move the Sri Lankan president said was directly inspired by Duterte’s policy in the Philippines.

During a cabinet meeting in July, Sirisena said he “was ready to sign the death warrants” of repeat drug offenders, according to his spokesperson Rajitha Senaratne. Nineteen drug offenders who were serving life sentences now face the death penalty.

The Sri Lankan government says narcotics are a growing problem in the country and in January this year, authorities seized a cocaine stash worth $108m from a single shipment in the port of Colombo, which is a growing hub for international drug trafficking.

“We were told that the Philippines has been successful in deploying the army and dealing with this problem,” said Senaratne in July. “We will try to replicate their success.”

(The Guardian)

Bank of China, one of the country's biggest lenders, has offered a loan of $300m to Sri Lanka's government, with the option of increasing the amount to one billion dollars.

The offer came as Colombo faces an economic crisis triggered by political uncertainty in the South Asian island nation. 

Eran Wickramaratne, Sri Lanka's junior finance minister, told the Reuters news agency on Tuesday that Sri Lanka was considering the Chinese offer.

He also confirmed that Sri Lanka had started negotiations to increase the amount of a swap deal with India's central bank to one billion dollars, up from a previously negotiated $400m. 

A series of credit rating downgrades amid a political crisis have made it harder for Sri Lanka to borrow as it faces record high repayments of $5.9bn this year, $2.6bn of which are due in the first three months.

"It's extremely difficult to tap the international market due to tight conditions and rating downgrades," said Wickramaratne, who is the state minister of finance.

"A government subcommittee will assess and negotiate on the tenure, size, and the price of this loan (with Bank of China). The cost of political crisis is high."

There was no confirmation from Bank of China about the loan offer. 

Investor confidence took a hit when President Maithripala Sirisena abruptly sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in October and replaced him with pro-China former president Mahinda Rajapaksa and dissolved the parliament.

Sri Lanka's top court then ruled the dissolution of parliament illegal and Wickremesinghe was restored to power in December.

But the seven-week-long crisis hurt the rupee and drove sovereign bond yields higher, straining state finances.

'Debt trap' By the end of 2018, nearly a quarter of Sri Lanka's total foreign debt was owed to China, which has lent some eight billion dollars while building ports and highways and planning other major investments in the island state as part of its drive to build a 21st-century "Silk Road" across nations and shipping lanes.

A source with knowledge of the Bank of China offer told Reuters on Tuesday that Sri Lanka's cabinet had already asked Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera to negotiate the loan. It has to be repaid within three years, the source said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping launched the "One Belt, One Road" project in May 2017, pledging tens of billions of dollars to build ports, highways and power grids in about 60 different countries, linking China to much of Asia, Europe and Africa.

China is already one of the biggest investors in various infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka. But there has been criticism, both locally and internationally, and growing concerns that China has lured Sri Lanka into a debt trap.

Despite security concerns and demonstrations, the two countries signed a $1.12bn agreement, giving China a 70 percent stake in a major port in Sri Lanka - Hambantota.

(Al Jazeera)

The Carbon Tax, which came into effect from January this year, is applicable to all vehicles and the registered owners of every motor vehicle specified in the Act will have to pay this levy, the Ministry of Finance and Media said in a statement.

"Only electric vehicles are exempted from the Carbon Tax, but all other vehicles including State-owned vehicles are liable for the carbon tax," the Finance Ministry said.

This was in response to various misinformation on social media that said that all State-owned vehicles are exempted from the carbon tax. Ministry sources confirmed that every single State-owned vehicle will be subjected to a carbon tax.

According to the Finance Act No. 35 of 2018, the registered owner of any relevant vehicle shall pay the carbon tax for every year, other than for the first year of the registration at the time of renewal of the annual registration of the vehicle.

The carbon tax is levied under three categories as follows based on each Cubic Centimeter capacity.

The Sri Lankan delegation to IMF headed by the Minister of Finance & Mass Media, Mangala Samaraweera met with Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund in Washington D.C., yesterday (15), to have discussions on the possibility of resuming the IMF programme in Sri Lanka.

Samaraweera had updated the IMF management on the recent developments regarding the Sri Lankan economy.

The Sri Lankan delegation discussed the possibility of resuming the IMF programme with a view to stabilizing the economy following the disruptions of post 26th October 2018, and stressed on Sri Lanka’s commitment to the economic reform agenda.

The IMF has disbursed over USD 1 Billion out of a USD 1.5 Billion three-year Extended Fund Facility (EFF) loan it had agreed in 2016.

Managing Director Lagarde stated that the IMF remains ready to support Sri Lankan authorities in these endeavors and a team from the IMF is scheduled to visit Colombo in February 2019 to resume programme discussions.

The Sri Lankan delegation included Non-Cabinet Minister of Public Distribution and Economic Reforms Harsha de Silva, Secretary to the Treasury Dr. R.H.S. Samaratunga, the Governor of Central Bank Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy, Senior Deputy Governor of the Central Bank Dr. N.P. Weerasinghe, , Economics Advisor to the Minister of Finance & Mass Media Deshal de Mel and Alternate and the Executive Director of the IMF for Sri Lanka  M. Siriwardena.

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