Sri Lanka

Economics

Politics

Sri Lanka's government announced that it reached an agreement in principle on debt restructuring terms with the Ad Hoc Group of Bondholders, the Local Consortium of Sri Lanka and the China Development Bank, NewsFirst reported on Sept. 19. 

Sri Lanka: Government Reached Agreement in Principle With Bondholders

Sri Lanka's electoral commission accepted 39 applications for the Sept. 21 presidential election, a record-high number of candidates, including incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe, Al Jazeera reported on Aug. 15.

Sri Lanka: 39 Candidates To Run in Presidential Election

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe failed to gain the support of the largest political party in Parliament, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, or SLPP, for his reelection bid in the Sept. 21 election, Reuters reported on July 29. 

Sri Lanka: President Fails To Secure Support From Largest Party for Reelection

Sri Lanka's Election Commission announced that the country will hold presidential elections on Sept. 21, with nominations for the election due on Aug. 15, Reuters reported July 26. 

Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka to Hold Presidential Elections on Sept. 21

Sri Lanka has concluded discussions with the ad hoc Bondholder Committee of International Sovereign Bonds, reaching an agreement on restructuring terms for approximately $12.5 billion of its $37 billion total external debt, The Hindu reported July 4.

Sri Lanka: Country Reaches Provisional Deal With Private Bondholders

The International Monetary Fund welcomed Sri Lanka's agreements with creditor nations to restructure approximately $10 billion in bilateral debt, stating that it brings the country closer to restoring debt sustainability, Reuters reported on June 27.

Sri Lanka: IMF Welcomes Sri Lanka's Debt Restructuring Deals With Bilateral Creditors

Sri Lankan government spokesperson Bandula Gunawardena said a treasury delegation was traveling to France to sign a long-delayed debt restructuring agreement on June 26 with a group of creditor nations, Reuters reported on June 25.

Sri Lanka: Government To Sign Debt Restructuring Agreement With External Creditors on June 26

Following the finalization of the International Monetary Fund's staff-level agreement with Sri Lanka in March, the fund's executive board approved the second review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 billion bailout, paving the way for the release of approximately $336 million in disbursements, Reuters reported on June 12.

Sri Lanka: IMF Executive Board Approves Second Review

Assessments

Global Elections

In Sri Lanka's presidential elections, differing views on the country's agreement with the International Monetary Fund and austerity measures, social issues involving Tamils and Muslims, and balancing relations with India and China heighten the risk of social unrest, delays in financial support, and uncertainty in economic planning and reforms, while the new president's insufficient support in Parliament may delay policy. 

Sri Lankan Presidential Candidates Face an Electorate Upset by the Economy

2024 Elections: Sri Lanka 

Social Issues

Sri Lanka's Sept. 21 presidential election will pit four candidates against one another, portending various political and economic risks.

2024 Elections: Sri Lanka

(From left to right) Peter Breuer, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission Chief for Sri Lanka, speaks next to Krishna Srinivasan, the Director of the IMF's Asia and Pacific Department, during a press conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on May 15, 2023. 

The IMF will likely approve the next tranche of Sri Lanka's $2.9 billion bailout. But if Colombo fails to reach a deal with its bondholders in the coming months, future disbursements may be at risk.

What's at Stake As Sri Lanka Struggles To Restructure Its Debt

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) headquarters building is seen in Washington, D.C. 

Military & Security

To keep the country's economic recovery on track, Colombo will likely seek to unlock the delayed next tranche of its bailout package by enacting more reforms, though this risks public backlash.

What's Next for Sri Lanka After Its Failed IMF Review?

Media

Bangladesh

Pakistan

Graphics

A man enters a foreign currency exchange shop in Islamabad, Pakistan, on July 11, 2023.

Inflation remains high in several South Asian countries amid political and economic constraints on reform.

Inflation Rates Across South Asia

Maldives

International Monetary Fund representative Rahul Anand (center) speaks during a press conference in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Nov. 9, 2022. 

Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives all face varying degrees of financial and economic risks in the years ahead unless they enact far-reaching (and politically unpopular) reforms.

Where Are South Asia's Most Vulnerable Economies Headed?

Snapshots

Supporters of the opposition National Peoples Power (NPP) take part in a protest in Colombo, Sri Lanka, to urge the government to hold local elections as scheduled on Feb. 26, 2023. 

The delayed ballot will offer a key glimpse into the country's political climate since last year's mass protests, and could weaken its new government's ability to enact IMF-mandated reforms.

The Significance of Sri Lanka's Upcoming Local Elections

China

India

China's ambassador to Sri Lanka (left) gestures upon the arrival of China's research and survey vessel, the Yuan Wang 5, at the Hambantota port on Aug. 16, 2022. 

As Beijing and New Delhi's rivalry intensifies, Colombo's attempts to maintain ties with (and financial aid from) both regional powers increasingly risks backfiring on the cash-strapped island nation.

For Sri Lanka, India's Anger Over a Chinese Ship Visit Highlights a Foreign Policy Dilemma

A vendor holds a newspaper with Sri Lanka's President-elect Ranil Wickramasinghe on the front page at a newsstand in Colombo on July 21, 2022. The six-time prime minister was sworn in as president later that day.

Wickremesinghe’s controversial ties to his ousted predecessor will impede his ability to appease protesters and lead the South Asian country out of its economic crisis.

In Sri Lanka, a New President Emerges From the Fray. Is He Up to the Task?

Columns

On Security

Opposition activists outside Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's private residence on June 22, 2022, in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Security

By focusing on an immediate demand to force out an unpopular government, protesters could be setting themselves on an uncertain and potentially dangerous new course.

Why What Happens Next in Sri Lanka May Be More Dangerous

Guidance

Zambia

Iran

Syria

Turkey

Italy

Russia

A protester waves Sri Lanka's national flag outside the presidential palace in Colombo on July 13, 2022. 

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Sri Lanka Picks a New President, a Russia-Turkey-Iran Summit

Anti-government protesters gather outside the presidential palace in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on July 9, 2022.

Energy

The president and prime minister’s resignations may briefly restore order, but the need for austerity measures could collapse the next government and spur new bouts of unrest.

Amid Mounting Protests and Economic Turmoil, Sri Lanka’s Leaders Call It Quits

The island of Sri Lanka lies twenty miles off the southeastern tip of India. Slightly smaller than Ireland, the country sits at the center of the Indian Ocean, just northeast of the Maldives island chain.     Sri Lanka is divided into two geographic zones.     The southwest of the island is Sri Lanka's core. It consists of the inland Central Highlands, flanked to the west by Colombo's seaside lowlands. This area receives most of the island's rainfall and is the country's agricultural heartland, producing rice for food consumption and its cash crops: coconut, tea and rubber. It also contains the island's gem and graphite deposits. Colombo has a deep natural harbor, which receives substantial traffic from nearby shipping lanes.      The northern part of the island is divided into the inland Vanni region and the Jaffna Peninsula on Palk Bay. The north is dry and agriculture is only possible because of large, ancient reservoirs. Fishing is the primary economic activity. The north is connected to India by a chain of islands and sandbars known as Adam's Bridge, which has historically eased the movement of goods and people to and from the mainland.      Sri Lanka's main geographic challenge is to protect its core around Colombo, while promoting integration with the north. The most recent challenge to Colombo's dominance was from the Tamil Tigers insurgent group, who used the Vanni region and Jaffna peninsula regions as bases to mount terrorist attacks. Uniting the north with the core will allow Colombo to take advantage of low-end manufacturing leaving China, using its underdeveloped north as a source of cheap labor.

SITUATION REPORTS

Sri Lanka: Government Reached Agreement in Principle With Bondholders

Sri Lanka: 39 Candidates To Run in Presidential Election

Sri Lanka: President Fails To Secure Support From Largest Party for Reelection

Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka to Hold Presidential Elections on Sept. 21

Sri Lanka: Country Reaches Provisional Deal With Private Bondholders

Sri Lanka: IMF Welcomes Sri Lanka's Debt Restructuring Deals With Bilateral Creditors

Sri Lanka: Government To Sign Debt Restructuring Agreement With External Creditors on June 26

Sri Lanka: IMF Executive Board Approves Second Review

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