Category: Daily Financial Times

The SLIMFA Media Conference 2026, organised by the Sri Lanka-India Media Friendship Association, was held recently to strengthen media cooperation, professional relationships, and knowledge exchange between Sri Lanka and India.

Three years ago Sri Lanka was a country running on empty. Petrol queues stretched for kilometres, the rupee was in free fall, and the government had just told its creditors it could not pay its bills. Today the queues are gone, inflation shifted to single digit regime, and the economy grew 5.1% in the first quarter of 2026. Which is the fastest since the crisis began. By most visible measures, the patient has walked out of the emergency ward.

But ask any doctor what happens after a patient survives a heart attack, and they will tell you survival is only the first test. The real question is whether the underlying condition that caused it has actually been treated or just stabilised for now. Sri Lanka’s economy faces exactly that question this year, and the early answers are not entirely reassuring.

The vital signs look good.

The chart underneath does not

Start with the headline number. The Department of Census and Statistics says the economy expanded 5.1% year on year in the January to March quarter, up from 4.8% the quarter before. This was fuelled by the construction, mining, and IT service leading the way. The International Monetary Fund, which has kept Sri Lanka on life support through a $3 billion bailout since 2023, has just released another $695 million tranche after certifying that the country is largely keeping its promises on tax collection and spending discipline.

This is genuine, hard-won progress. Inflation, which touched nearly 70% in late 2022, has been tamed to low single digits. The government is now running a primary budget surplus, collecting more revenue than it spends, before interest payments for the first time in years. None of this happened by accident. It took unpopular subsidy cuts, tax hikes, and years of austerity that households are still feeling in their cost of living.

Yet underneath that improving headline, the rupee has been quietly losing ground all year. It has slipped from around Rs.296 to the US dollar in mid-2025 to roughly Rs.335-336 by late June. This is a depreciation of more than 12% over twelve months, including a 5.4% slide since January alone. The Central Bank has been careful to frame this as an orderly, managed adjustment rather than a panic. Nevertheless, a currency does not weaken for no reason. It weakens because more dollars are leaving the country than are coming in, and the central bank is unwilling or unable to keep selling its own reserves to minimise that gap.

And those reserves are not as deep as the headline figure suggests. Sri Lanka held about $6.77 billion in gross official reserves at the end of April. This sounds substantial until you remember the country needs roughly that much every two to three months just to pay for its imports. Strip out $2.1 billion in debt repayments due within the year and roughly $765 million in forward dollar commitments already promised and the cushion gets thin fast. Under the IMF program, the Central Bank is supposed to build reserves to $8.9 billion by year end. Which is a target that gets harder to hit every month the current account stays in deficit.

Two shocks arrived from completely different directions at the same time

What turned a manageable adjustment into something more uncomfortable were two events Sri Lanka has no control over.

The first was Cyclone Ditwah, which tore through the country, especially the central tea-growing districts of Kandy and Nuwara Eliya late last year. It knocked nearly a million kilograms off tea production and disrupted the December tourist season just as visitor numbers were climbing. For a country that depends on agricultural exports and tourism for foreign exchange, a storm in the hill country is a balance of payments story, not just a local one.

The second was the war in West Asia, which reignited in February 2026 and has driven global oil prices higher ever since. Sri Lanka imports almost all of its fuel, and when crude oil prices rise, the effect ripples through everything from electricity bills to bus fares to the cost of running a tea factory. By March, the government was rationing fuel and shifting parts of the public sector to a shortened working week just to manage demand. The IMF has been blunt about the consequences. It has cut its 2026 growth forecast for Sri Lanka to around 3%, down from the 5% actually achieved last year. The IMF cites higher oil prices, weaker tourism receipts, and a current account now expected to swing back into deficit after a rare surplus in 2025 as fundamentals behind this decision.

Put together, a cyclone in the country and an oil shock seven thousand kilometers away in the Middle East have landed on Sri Lanka’s books in the very same quarter. That is not a coincidence the country engineered. It is what economists mean by being small and open. It is small enough that it cannot influence global oil prices or Middle Eastern politics and open enough that it arrives on countries› doorsteps within weeks of each other.

The real diagnosis: an economy that still doesn’t earn enough dollars

Here is the uncomfortable truth that the 2022 crisis exposed and that three years of austerity have not fully fixed. Sri Lanka does not generate enough foreign exchange of its own to comfortably run itself, let alone absorb shocks like these.

Consider the country’s three traditional dollar earners; tea brought in $1.5 billion in export earnings in 2025. Which is a reasonable 5% increase. But still a fraction of what the economy needs and now facing fresh pressure as cyclone-damaged plantations recover. Tourism generated $3.2 billion last year on a record arrival of 2.36 million visitors, except earnings barely grew at all. The earnings, in fact, grew only 1.6%, because the average tourist is now spending less per day than in 2024. More people are coming, but each one is leaving behind less money. December earnings actually fell nearly 15% year on year even as arrivals rose. Apparel, the workhorse of the export economy, crossed $5 billion for the first time. But the industry now has to navigate a 20% United States tariff on its goods, a policy decision in Washington that the World Bank estimates could shrink Sri Lankan garment exports to America by up to 12%.

Add it all up, tea, apparel, tourism, IT services, everything the country sells abroad and total export earnings will reach about $17.25 billion in 2025. That is a real achievement and a record high. But measured against the size of the economy and its import bill (fuel, machinery, vehicles, food, and medicine), it is not enough cushion to absorb a war in the Middle East and the cyclone in the same year without the currency wobbling.

This is the chronic condition the IMF program was never designed to cure on its own. The bailout fixed the emergency, stopped the bleeding, restructured unpayable debt, and rebuilt some trust with creditors. What it could not do, because no austerity program can, is manufacture new dollar earning industries out of thin air. That requires different medicine and sustained investment in expanding what the country sells to the world, not just stabilising what it already has. Until Sri Lanka’s export base grows by several billion dollars a year rather than a few hundred million, it will keep being one bad season (one cyclone, one war, one weak tourist year) away from currency pressure.

A third shock is brewing eight thousand kilometres from Colombo

If the West Asia war and Cyclone Ditwah were the shocks Sri Lanka has already absorbed, there is a third one forming that the country has had no part in creating at all, a possible bursting of the global boom in artificial intelligence stocks.

This past week offered a preview of what that might look like. On Tuesday, South Korea’s stock market, one of the most exposed in the world to the AI and semiconductor boom, plunged 10% in a single session triggering an automatic trading halt. Samsung and SK Hynix, the two chipmakers that together make up roughly half the value of that market, each lost more than 12% before partly recovering the next day. The tremor reached Wall Street too, with the technology heavy Nasdaq posting its worst week in over a year. Some analysts now describe the AI rally as entering its final stage before a correction. Others insist the underlying demand for chips and data centres remains genuine and the wobble was just nerves.

Why should anyone in Colombo care what happens to a chip stock in Seoul? Because South Korea’s experience is a warning about concentrating a small number of companies and a single narrative carrying outsized weight in markets with global capital pouring in on the hope the good times will not stop. If that capital reverses even partially, it tends to pull money out of emerging and frontier markets first, tightening financial conditions exactly when countries like Sri Lanka can least afford it. A US Federal Reserve that turns more cautious on rates because of an AI-driven wobble, or a flight to safety that strengthens the dollar against everything else, would land on Sri Lanka’s reserves and rupee just as surely as a Middle East war does, just through a different door.

This is the nature of being a small open economy in 2026. Shocks do not queue up politely and arrive one at a time. They arrive from the unfavourable weather conditions, from the Persian Gulf, or from a server farm in Seoul, all in the same season.

From crisis management to

growth strategy, the pivot

Sri Lanka has not yet made

This brings us to the real choice in front of the country’s economic management, and it is bigger than any single budget or quarter’s GDP number.

For roughly three years, Sri Lankan economic policy has been almost by necessity crisis management. Stop defaulting, restructure debt, rebuild reserves, hit IMF quarterly targets, and survive the next review. That mode has a logic of its own, reacts to the immediate threat, defends whatever stability exists, and buys time. It worked in the narrow sense that the country did not collapse further and is now growing again.

But crisis management and growth strategy are not the same discipline, and continuing to run the first when the moment calls for the second is itself a risk. A country can hit every IMF target, keep its primary surplus, and still find itself permanently vulnerable to the next oil shock or bad cyclone season. Because none of that fixes the underlying export shortfall. The recent national budget, themed around fiscal discipline, sets a growth target of roughly 7% for 2026, considerably more optimistic than the IMF’s own projection of around 3%. That gap between ambition and realistic forecast is itself a symptom. A government still managing quarter to quarter, hoping growth outpaces the shocks, rather than building export capacity that would make the next shock survivable by design rather than by luck.

What would a genuine shift to growth targeted policy look like? It means targeting export expansion, getting that $17 billion figure to $20 billion and beyond, with annual increases measured in billions rather than a few hundred million dollars. This should be done as the central economic priority, not a side conversation. It means capital spending that actually gets built rather than budgeted and then quietly underspent, as has happened for years. It means using the upcoming amendments to investment laws and the Colombo Port City framework to attract the kind of foreign investment that builds new factories and new earning capacity, not just new debt. It means accepting that debt repayments due in 2028 are close enough now that the work to be ready for them has to start today, not in 2027.

None of these are complex economic theories. It is the basic, unglamorous discipline of building dollar earnings capacity faster than the world can through shocks at you. Sri Lanka has proven over the last three years that it can survive a crisis. The next three will test something harder. Whether it can grow its way to genuine resilience or keep lurching from one external shock to the next, each time hoping the IMF program and bit of luck will see it through.

The patient is out of the emergency ward. The question the country’s policymakers have not yet answered and need to urgently address is whether they are still treating the symptom or finally treating the disease.

The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) has launched an investigation into allegations of torture, ill-treatment and deaths in custody linked to the recent violence at Negombo Prison, while raising serious concerns over the conduct of prison authorities, including the denial of the Commission’s statutory right to inspect detention facilities.

The Commission said prison officials at Welikada Prison denied its officers access on the night of 7 July despite the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka Act, No. 21 of 1996, granting the Commission unrestricted authority to enter and inspect places of detention without prior notice.

The issue was taken up at a meeting on 14 July chaired by HRCSL Chairman Justice L.T.B. Dehideniya with senior officials of Welikada Prison.

Prison officials told the Commission that access was denied because of a volatile security situation inside the prison, claiming tensions had escalated after intelligence was received that groups of prison officers planned to assault inmates transferred from Negombo Prison following the killing of prison officers during the unrest. They also expressed regret over the failure to communicate the situation to the Commission.

However, the HRCSL said the explanation was unsatisfactory.

“The decision-making and behaviour of the officials of the Welikada Prison disrespected the mandate of the Commission,” it said.

“It was not satisfied with the explanation provided by the said officials and that, in any event, the failure to communicate a breakdown in security within the prison premises was unacceptable.”

The Commission said officers who subsequently visited Welikada Prison received complaints from inmates transferred from Negombo Prison alleging reprisals, including torture, denial of essential medical treatment and other forms of ill-treatment.

HRCSL officers also observed that some inmates had visible injuries for which they had not received medical treatment. Several inmates reportedly said they were reluctant to seek medical care because they feared being assaulted after being separated from the general prison population.

The Commission also expressed concern over delays in processing inmate transfers from Negombo Prison, saying the whereabouts of some transferred prisoners had not been disclosed to their next of kin.

It warned that the prolonged failure to disclose the whereabouts of any person in detention could potentially constitute an offence under the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance Act, No. 5 of 2018.

In addition, the Commission found that some inmates transferred from Negombo Prison remained in custody despite having completed their prison sentences, describing their continued detention as unlawful.

The HRCSL said it would continue investigations into allegations of torture, ill-treatment and deaths in custody arising from the Negombo Prison violence and subsequent events at other prisons.

It directed Welikada Prison authorities to fully cooperate with the investigation and issued a series of recommendations to prison authorities, including an immediate circular reaffirming the Commission’s statutory inspection powers, strict orders prohibiting reprisals against transferred inmates, immediate disclosure of the whereabouts of all transferred prisoners to their families, and the prompt release of inmates who have completed their sentences.

DMS Software Engineering Ltd. (DMS) has announced the successful implementation of its flagship DMS-IMAGO platform at HSBC Sri Lanka, marking another milestone in the company’s journey as a trusted provider of enterprise-grade banking technology solutions.

The implementation further reinforces DMS’ growing reputation as a fintech partner capable of delivering scalable, future-ready infrastructure to global financial institutions.

Director/General Manager Baheerathan Thillaiampalam said: “The successful implementation of DMS-IMAGO at HSBC Sri Lanka reflects the confidence global banking institutions place in our technology and engineering capabilities. We remain committed to developing secure, future-ready banking solutions that help financial institutions improve efficiency, strengthen compliance, and prepare for the evolving demands of modern banking.”

Developed as a comprehensive Cheque Image Clearing Solutions, DMS-IMAGO is designed to streamline and modernise cheque processing and clearing operations. The platform digitises and automates the entire cheque clearing lifecycle, transforming traditional paper-based workflows into a secure, image-driven digital process that enables banks to improve operational efficiency, strengthen compliance, reduce manual intervention, and enhance processing accuracy within highly regulated banking environments.

DMS-IMAGO provides end-to-end functionality across inward and outward clearing, inward and outward returns, postdated cheque processing, and transfer cheque management. Supporting both LKR and USD clearing operations, the platform can operate within centralised, decentralised, or hybrid banking environments depending on operational requirements.

Within the inward clearing cycle, the system downloads cheque images and clearing data received from the Clearing House, segregates images based on predefined criteria, and enables image scrutiny and signature verification to identify technical returns. Through direct integration with Core Banking Systems (CBS), the solution validates accounts, identifies fund-based returns, and generates outward return submissions while automated validations, duplicate detection mechanisms, repair workflows, maker-checker controls, and structured authorisation processes help reduce operational risk and processing delays.

Within the outward clearing cycle, the platform captures cheque images through image-clearing devices, extracts MICR data, generates clearing files in the required formats, and facilitates secure electronic transmission to the Clearing House. The system also reconciles inward return information against outward clearing data, improving visibility and operational control across time-sensitive clearing operations aligned with T+1 and LankaClear compliance requirements.

Through the implementation of the IMAGO Cheque Imaging and Truncation System at HSBC , cheques were digitised at source, maker-checker controls were enforced, automated validations and duplicate detection mechanisms were activated, workflows were centralised, and comprehensive audit trails were established. The COO of HSBC has stated that, “This transformation enabled HSBC Sri Lanka to improve processing accuracy, reduce operational risk and turnaround time, strengthen compliance, and establish a scalable, future-ready clearing environment aligned with evolving regulatory and business requirements.”

The platform’s Postdated Cheque (PDC) Module enables banks to warehouse and manage postdated cheques with facilities to advance, delay, or hold value dates until dispatch, while its Transfer Cheque Module supports on-us cheque processing with full authorisation and audit capabilities without routing transactions through the Clearing House.

Built on a secure three-tier .NET architecture and deployed as a Windows MS ClickOnce application, DMS-IMAGO enables simplified deployment, centralised control, automatic version updates, rollback capabilities, and secure isolated installations without requiring administrator privileges on end-user devices. The solution also integrates seamlessly with signature verification systems and third-party banking applications, strengthening automation, compliance, and risk management across banking operations.

Since its introduction in 2005, DMS-IMAGO has been successfully deployed across multiple banks in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, demonstrating its maturity, scalability, and reliability. Backed by over four decades of domain expertise in banking technology, DMS continues to deliver intelligent, enterprise-grade solutions that support the future of financial services and empower banks to operate with greater agility, resilience, and confidence.

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the implementation of a German-funded program worth pound 924,063 (around Rs. 314 million) to promote energy-efficient and climate-resilient buildings in Sri Lanka.

BOC’s esteemed customer and former Sri Lankan National Cricket Caption Mahela Jayawardena, performing the very first BOC Flex Tap and Pay transaction, officially unveiling Sri Lanka’s first mobile wallet with Tap and Pay. Mastercard Country Manager – Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka Sandun Hapugoda was among the distinguished participants at the launch of BOC Flex Tap and Pay

Bank of Ceylon (BOC) last week took another significant step in the country’s digital banking evolution with the launch of BOC Flex – Tap and Pay, Sri Lanka’s first mobile banking wallet-based contactless payment solution.

Deputy Finance Minister Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando and Digital Economy Deputy Minister Eng. Eranga Weearatne officiated at the launch in the presence of BOC Chairman Kavinda De Zoysa, General Manager/Chief Executive Officer Y.A. Jayathilaka, Board of Directors and senior management, representatives of the trade union,

Mastercard, technology and solution partners as well as select customers.

Following the successful introduction of its next-generation Internet and Mobile Banking platform BOC Flex in March 2025, BOC continues to lead the transformation of Sri Lanka’s digital financial landscape by delivering innovative, customer-centric banking solutions. The launch of Tap and Pay on 9 July 2026 marks another milestone in this journey, enabling customers to make secure, seamless, and convenient contactless payments directly through BOC Flex.

Tap and Pay introduces a secure digital wallet integrated with virtual card technology, enabling customers to make fast, secure, and seamless contactless payments at NFC-enabled Point-of-Sale (POS) terminals as well as online merchants directly through the BOC Flex mobile banking app.

Bank of Ceylon Chairman Kavinda De Zoysa said: ‘At Bank of Ceylon, we are committed to shaping the future of banking by investing in Technology that creates meaningful value for our customers and the nation. The launch of Tap and Pay solution reflects our strategic vision of building a digitally empowered, customer friendly financially inclusive economy. As the country’s leading bank, we have a responsibility not only to embrace emerging technologies but also to lead Sri Lanka’s digital transformation by delivering fast, secure, convenient and globally benchmarked financial solutions. This milestone further reinforces our commitment to supporting the Government’s Digital Economy agenda while continuously enhancing the customer experience.’

General Manager/Chief Executive Officer Y.A. Jayathilaka said: ‘At Bank of Ceylon, we believe innovation should make banking simpler, safer and more convenient for every customer. We are proud to introduce Sri Lanka’s first mobile banking wallet -based Tap and Pay solution, marking another important milestone in the country’s banking industry. This innovation reflects our continued commitment to delivering world-class digital banking experiences while supporting Sri Lanka’s transition towards a modern, cash-lite economy.’

BOC Flex Wallet provides customers with a secure and convenient platform to manage their digital finances. Customers can transfer funds from their BOC accounts to the wallet, make bill payments, transfer funds to BOC accounts, and settle outstanding BOC credit card balances. The wallet also serves as the funding source for the BOC Flex Virtual Card, enabling secure contactless payments. The built-in Auto Top-Up facility automatically transfers funds from a linked BOC account whenever the wallet balance is insufficient, ensuring uninterrupted payment experiences.

The BOC Flex Virtual Card offers customers greater flexibility and enhanced security by enabling contactless payments at NFC-enabled POS terminals and secure online purchases. Customers can create and manage up to three virtual cards, instantly suspend or reactivate cards through self-service functionality, and seamlessly switch funding sources whenever required.

The introduction of BOC Flex – Tap and Pay aligns with Sri Lanka’s national agenda of accelerating digital payment adoption and expanding access to secure financial services. By enabling simple, reliable and cardless payment experiences, the solution promotes financial inclusion while encouraging greater adoption of cashless transactions across the country.

The Bank continues to serve customers through more than 2,500 customer touchpoints across Sri Lanka, including branches, BOC Connect outlets, Digi Centres, ATMs, CRMs and CDMs, while maintaining an international presence in India, Maldives, Seychelles and the United Kingdom. BOC’s commitment to excellence has earned recognition among the World’s Top 500 Banking Brands.

BOC’s digital leadership has received global recognition through the Digital CX Awards 2026 in Singapore, where BOC Flex became the first Sri Lankan banking application to receive such international recognition, securing three prestigious awards for customer experience and digital banking excellence. These achievements build upon the platform’s success at the National ICT Awards 2025, the National Project Management Excellence Awards and the LankaPay Technovation Awards, further reinforcing BOC’s pioneering role in Sri Lanka’s digital banking transformation.

The launch of BOC Flex – Tap and Pay marks another milestone in Bank of Ceylon’s digital transformation journey, reaffirming its commitment to delivering innovative, secure and customer-centric banking solutions while shaping the future of digital payments in Sri Lanka.

The banking sector channelled an estimated 70% of last year’s credit expansion into productive sectors, Hatton National Bank (HNB) Managing Director/CEO Damith Pallewatte said yesterday, arguing that the resurgence in bank lending has largely supported economic activity rather than consumption despite heightened public attention on vehicle financing.

Total outstanding private sector borrowing from the banking sector increased 25.2% to an eight-year high of Rs. 10,212 billion in 2025, nearly doubling from touching Rs. 5,561.4 billion in 2018. By end-May 2026, total outstanding credit exceeded Rs. 11 trillion.

Addressing the Sri Lanka Economic Association and Gamani Corea Foundation Economic Forum on ‘Financial Sector Resilience Amidst External Shocks: Managing Policy Challenges for Financial Stability,’ Pallewatte said the composition of credit growth had been misunderstood, with business lending accounting for the lion’s share of new advances.

‘Credit growth in the banking sector was almost at its peak last year. Even though I don’t have the exact numbers, I would say at least 70% would have gone to productive sectors because consumption growth was relatively subdued,’ he said.

He said the depreciation of the rupee had significantly increased the working capital requirements of manufacturers and other businesses reliant on imported raw materials, resulting in higher demand for bank financing even where production volumes remained unchanged.

The rupee depreciated 5.6% against the US dollar in 2025.

‘If a factory wanted to continue operating at the same capacity, it simply needed more rupees to finance imported inputs. That naturally increased the demand for bank credit,’ he explained.

Pallewatte said banks had also seen strong lending to export-oriented businesses, while consumer-related borrowing remained comparatively muted.

‘We have not seen much growth in credit card portfolios or consumption-related personal lending. What we have seen is gradual growth in housing finance, and that is a positive development,’ he said, noting that home financing had continued to expand this year.

He rejected suggestions that the banking sector had disproportionately channelled funds into vehicle purchases following the relaxation of import restrictions, arguing that the segment had attracted greater attention because of the backlog in demand accumulated during the import ban.

‘There was a significant period without vehicle imports. Naturally, many people who had delayed purchases wanted to own vehicles once imports resumed,’ he said. ‘It is not that the sector directed funds to the wrong sectors. Vehicle finance perhaps received disproportionate attention because its growth was more visible.’

Economists have likewise argued that the surge in vehicle imports has been widely misconstrued. In November 2025, JB Securities estimated that transport equipment and personal vehicle imports reached $ 1.851 billion in the first 11 months of the year, with the full-year total projected at around $ 2.1 billion. It noted that vehicle imports accounted for only 12.86% of current account outflows up to November 2025, while Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) reserves increased by over $ 200 million during the month, arguing that stable exchange rates, strong remittance inflows, and peak tourism would further strengthen the external position.

Pallewatte acknowledged that banks, as custodians of depositors’ funds, remained bound by prudent risk management and regulatory requirements, limiting their ability to take excessive credit risks.

However, he argued that the banking sector had nevertheless played a pivotal role in supporting Sri Lanka’s economic recovery.

‘I don’t think the country could have achieved growth of more than 5% if the financial sector had not taken some level of risk,’ he said.

While there remained scope for banks to undertake greater calculated risk-taking, he said this would require continued improvements in policy consistency, institutional processes, and the broader operating environment.

Earlier, Pallewatte said Sri Lanka’s banking sector had demonstrated its resilience during the country’s economic crisis but would need to adapt to a rapidly evolving risk landscape shaped by geopolitical uncertainty, cyber threats, climate change, and an emerging shortage of experienced talent.

He said geopolitical tensions, shifting global trade dynamics, and supply chain disruptions had become interconnected risks capable of affecting banks’ asset quality and liquidity, while the rapid migration towards digital banking had heightened cybersecurity threats for both institutions and customers.

Pallewatte also warned that climate-related risks were becoming increasingly material for Sri Lanka’s financial system given the economy’s dependence on agriculture and climate-sensitive value chains.

He identified the post-pandemic migration of skilled professionals as another structural challenge facing the industry, saying capability gaps across middle and senior management would take time to address.

Despite these challenges, Pallewatte expressed confidence in the sector’s capacity to withstand future shocks, citing comfortable capital adequacy and liquidity levels, together with stronger recovery planning developed in the aftermath of the economic crisis.

‘The banking sector has the capacity to manage these challenges. The question is how quickly we adapt to this combination of emerging risks while continuing to strengthen resilience,’ he said.

As the Association of Human Resources Professionals Sri Lanka marks 25 years, I am deeply honoured to share this message at a defining moment in our journey.

This anniversary celebrates the vision, commitment and collective effort of those who recognised that HR must play a central role in shaping organisations, developing leaders and defining the future of work in Sri Lanka.

Since its founding in 2000, AHRP has become a respected professional body and has helped advance HR practice across Sri Lanka’s corporate sector. Through knowledge sharing, professional development, national conferences, HR awards, think tanks, university partnerships and collaborations with global institutions such as SHRM, the Association has strengthened a more capable and future-focused HR community.

This journey has been shaped by our Founders, Past Presidents, Executive Committees, members, partners, sponsors and well-wishers. I also extend my sincere appreciation to the current Executive Committee, whose dedication, passion and teamwork have made this Silver Jubilee celebration possible. Their contribution reflects the very spirit of AHRP: professional, committed and purpose-driven.

Organisations today are navigating rapid shifts in technology, skills, employee expectations, productivity and workplace culture. HR must therefore serve as a strategic force that brings business, technology and people together to build capability, resilience and sustainable growth.

As we mark this milestone, we look to the future with renewed purpose. AHRP will continue to advance the profession, strengthen human capability and support Sri Lanka’s progress towards more productive, progressive and people-centred organisations.

The future will not be shaped by technology alone, but by organisations that develop adaptable, ethical and business-minded people. As the world increasingly shifts its focus from managing human capital to building human capability, HR has an unprecedented opportunity to influence boardrooms, strengthen institutions and contribute meaningfully to national economic progress. This is the leadership role that AHRP is committed to championing.

Our greatest achievement is not the first 25 years we celebrate today, but the foundation we have laid for the next 25. Our success will not be measured by the number of events we host or certifications we deliver, but by the leaders we inspire, the organisations we transform and the lasting impact we create for Sri Lanka.

On behalf of AHRP, I thank everyone who has contributed to this remarkable journey. May this Silver Jubilee be remembered not simply as a celebration of our past, but as the moment we collectively committed ourselves to shaping the future of work, organisations and human capability in Sri Lanka.

It is an honour to serve as Project Chair for AHRP’s 25th anniversary. This milestone recognises the collective effort of those who have advanced the HR profession and strengthened the human capital that supports Sri Lanka’s progress. As AHRP begins its next chapter, the Association remains committed to developing capable, future-ready HR professionals who create value and lead meaningful business and societal transformation.

We are especially honoured to welcome the Hon. Prime Minister as Chief Guest, alongside CEOs, C-suite leaders and HR heads from across Sri Lanka’s business community. Their presence reflects a shared commitment to the future of work and organisations.

This celebration has been made possible by the generous support of our sponsors and partners: LinkedIn, Title Sponsor and Presenting Partner; i-context (Pvt) Ltd, Diamond Sponsor; Singer (Sri Lanka) PLC, Gold Sponsor; and Sentiva LLC, Silver Sponsor. We also thank Training Consortium (Pvt) Ltd, Strategic Training and Coaching Partner; Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC, Strategic Banking Partner; and MiHCM and Sysco LABS Sri Lanka, Strategic Partners. Our Associate Partners are Oracle, Hayleys PLC, Thyaga and RewardzHub.AI and the Colombo Stock Exchange, while Hayleys Fentons Limited, John Keells Holdings PLC and MOVA join us as Supporting Partners. We also thank The Maharaja Media Network, Electronic Media Partner, and Daily FT, Print Media Partner.

My appreciation also goes to Cinnamon Life for hosting the event, and to Imran Saibo and the teams at Showtime Lanka and Rockland for bringing it to life. I thank AHRP’s Executive Committee and Past Presidents for their stewardship, and every member, partner and guest who has joined us to mark this milestone. This anniversary continues AHRP’s legacy of bringing global best practice to Sri Lanka and sets the direction for what comes next.

The Association of Human Resources Professionals Sri Lanka (AHRP) commemorated its 25th anniversary with a special market-opening and bell-ringing ceremony at the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) on 13 July 2026. The occasion recognised AHRP’s contribution to advancing the human resource profession in Sri Lanka and its role in strengthening leadership, organisational capability and people practices across the country.

The ceremony commenced with presentations by the CSE and AHRP, followed by a welcome address by CSE Chief Executive Officer Rajeeva Bandaranaike. AHRP President Thushara Jayawardana then delivered remarks reflecting on the Association’s 25-year journey, its contribution to Sri Lanka’s business community and its priorities for the future of the profession.

The market was formally opened with the ringing of the bell by representatives of AHRP and the CSE. AHRP’s leadership delegation included President Thushara Jayawardana, Immediate Past President Roshan Kulasuriya, Executive Vice President Ravi Jayasekera, Senior Vice President Oshana Dias, Project Chair Chandi Dharmaratne, Vice President Suresh Muttiah, Treasurer Sampath Alwis and Secretary Dilani Jayalath. They were joined by Rajeeva Bandaranaike and CSE Senior Vice President of Human Resources Anoja Senanayake.

The event concluded with an exchange of commemorative memorabilia between AHRP and the CSE, marking the significance of the milestone and the shared importance both institutions placed on strong leadership, capable people and sustainable organisational growth.