Browsing VR Insights by Issue Date
Now showing items 1-20 of 73
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A Win-Win Solution for Management and Workers in the Tea industry
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2013-03)Pareto Efficiency is an important concept in economics. It occurs when all win-win opportunities have been fully pursued. In societies as well as in organisations there are numerous opportunities to make changes that leave ... -
The Tea Industry: A New Sustainability Approach
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2013-06-09)What do unions do? In a landmark title by this name (1984), Harvard University economists Richard Freeman and James Medoff demonstrated that labour unions have two faces. One is confrontational and the other is cooperative. ... -
The Economy is Growing, but Where are the Jobs?
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2013-06-26)The Sri Lankan economy is reported to have grown by 6.4 percent in 2012. This was less than what was hoped, but still a robust level of growth. In 2010 and 2011 growth was an extremely healthy 8 percent and 8.2 percent. ... -
Justice in Slow Motion Corrodes Sri Lanka's Economy
(2013-07)The Insight discusses three aspects regarding the inherent lengthy delays in the Sri Lankan court system. First, delays in dispute resolution are costly—and not merely in legal fees, but in investments and initiatives ... -
The post war growth bump has hit the ceiling
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2013-08)This article explores the question of whether Sri Lanka could expect higher sustained GDP growth post-war and concludes that the post-war bump-up is over for the time being. It suggests that the high growth is unsustainable ... -
Can the Singapore Chinthanaya work for Sri Lanka?
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2013-10)Singapore is a classic example of an Asian country that avoided the middle-income trap, and it has often been sighted as a model for Sri Lanka. This article substantiates the claim that there is neither a theoretical nor ... -
The Economics of Media Freedom: is Sri Lanka on a virtuous or vicious cycle?
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2013-10)This article explains the economic importance of media freedom by considering three reasons: i) indicative reasons; ii) instrumental reasons; and iii) integral reasons. Media freedom is indicatively important because it ... -
‘Cess’ – End the Deception and Build ‘Street Lights’
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2013-11-27)In Sri Lanka, ‘Cess’ is the name given to a special tax imposed on sales, where the revenue is earmarked for a specific fund with a particular economic purpose. This article discusses how the government has stymied export ... -
Sri Lanka’s Trade Liberalisation: What you see is NOT what you get
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-01-08)Sri Lanka’s 2014 Budget claims a continuous commitment by the government to maintain a liberal, consistent and simple trade regime. The budget speech puts it this way: “A four band tariff structure presently in place is ... -
Policy Needed on Environment: REDD+ is a plus
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-03-14)The prime minister of Sri Lanka made a policy statement on 5th November 2013 to indicate the future priorities of the new government. It had over 70 inspirational statements indicating a wide array of issues and subjects ... -
Solving the dilemma of export diversification
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-03-19)Sri Lanka’s exports are flagging in two ways: first, the exports to GDP ratio is on the decline; second, Sri Lanka’s share in world exports is on the decline. The second is important in understanding the problem: it tells ... -
TAs with India and China: Potential for Sri Lanka
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-04)Sri Lanka has various levels of trade agreements (TAs) with both India and China. A new TA with China was mooted in 2014 and the appetite for that continues in the new presidency and policy context of 2015. While statistics ... -
Sri Lanka Tourism: What got us here, won’t get us there
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-04-23)Sri Lanka has doubled its tourist arrivals since 2010, which is credited to the peaceful environment in the country following the ending of the war together with the ongoing strategic investments in the tourism sector, new ... -
Parliament should have a formula for regulating cigarettes
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-06)Variations in the tobacco excise tax affects Rs. 10s of billions in government revenue. Taxation and pricing have been inconsistent. This insight explains how the lack of a consistent method allows wide discretion to ... -
Is Blocking Websites Making Sri Lankan Telecom Share Prices Vulnerable?
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-07)If Sri Lankan Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are blocking news websites without due diligence, then their present and future share values are vulnerable. This Insight explains what ISPs should do to ensure minimum due ... -
Explaining the Mirage of GDP Growth Optimism
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-08)The government estimates that by 2015 per capita GDP will quadruple from what it was in 2004. But this is a mirage: real incomes will not even double in that period. The mirage is created by counting in US dollars and ... -
USD 20 billion export target by 2020: Aiming to be mediocre
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-08)In 2014, the government set an 'ambitious' target to increase exports to USD 20 billion by 2020. The Insight argues that this target is rather mediocre and yet, even with such a low bar, it is out of Sri Lanka's reach. ... -
Sri Lanka’s international borrowing costs are not declining
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-11)The government first raised international debt through bonds in October 2007. Since then several international bonds have been issued to feed the government’s twin demands: financing its spending and propping up foreign ... -
Improving Sri Lanka’s Business Environment: It’s not so difficult
(2014-11)In his budget speech, Finance Minister, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said Sri Lanka “aims at gaining a ranking among the top 10 countries in Asia Pacific in the Doing Business Index (DBI).” This Insight finds constructive ... -
Any president can contest a third term – if 18A is valid
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2014-11)This INSIGHT discusses the eligibility of twice-elected Sri Lankan presidents to contest a third term. It demonstrates that the textual arguments claiming to disqualify such presidents are mistaken: first, because an ...