A Note From Muttukrishna Sarvananthan, 6 January 2015
I am almost entirely in agreement with Razeen Sally’s article in Wall Street Journal http://www.wsj.com
Unfortunately, I do not have time to respond in detail but the following op-eds of mine written during 2014 AS WELLAS one each by journalist Namini Wijedasa and Prof. Amal Kumarage as well complement Razeen Sally’s analysis of the state of the Sri Lankan economy and polity under the Rajapakse regime.
* Road building or rip-off? Prof. Amal Kumarage (University of Moratuwa) (December 2014) …. http://www.sundaytimes.lk/141221/news/road-building-or-rip-off-128259.html
* Hambantota a Heaven for Projects by Namini Wijedasa (December 2014) …. http://www.sundaytimes.lk/141130/news/hambantota-haven-for-projects-130139.html
* Post War Development in Nepal and Sri Lanka: A Comparison by Muttukrishna Sarvananthan (September 2014) … http://www.sundaytimes.lk/140907/business-times/comparison-of-post-war-development-in-nepal-and-sri-lanka-116120.html
* Elusive Economic Peace Dividend in Sri Lanka: All that glitters is not gold by Muttukrishna Sarvananthan (June 2014) ……. http://groundviews.org/2014/06/24/elusive-economic-peace-dividend-in-sri-lanka-all-that-glitters-is-not-gold/
* Illusory Economy versus the Real Economy of Sri Lanka: A rejoinder to the Governor of the Central Bank by Muttukrishna Sarvananthan (April 2014)…. http://www.ceylontoday.lk/91-61092-news-detail-illusory-economy-versus-the-real-economy-of-sri-lanka.html
* Chinese Chasm Grips Sri Lanka by Muttukrishna Sarvananthan (Feb 2013)…. http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_cat=article-details&page=article-details&code_title=72756
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A Note From Saman Kelegama, 7 January 2015
I am tied up with a number of deadlines and will not be able to respond in the next couple of days.
Meanwhile, I am annexing two articles that appeared in the Daily FT today which highlight some of the anomalies of the current growth process.
The first article which is annexed below supports the position taken by Mick Moore that addressing growing inequality is crucial as it has prevented high growth trickling down to reduce poverty. Inequality has to be addressed via direct policy measures before any doses of neo-liberal reforms. Such reforms can be implemented gradually with appropriate sequencing where necessary. … http://www.ft.lk/2015/01/06/development-an-economic-faux-pas/
The second article (although I am yet to go through the Figures and how accurate the calculations are) basically highlights where things have gone wrong in the management of the economy, especially the budget deficit that does not reflect huge government guarantees given –that amounts close to 5% of GDP. It also highlights the non-sustainability of the debt-fuelled consumption and investment led growth model of the regime which we have highlighted a number of times in the past…… http://www.ft.lk/2015/01/06/wake-up-fellow-citizens-save-the-nation-now/
Again, the underlying structural problems cannot be addressed by further doses of neo-liberal reforms alone, they need a combination of policies – institutional strengthening, targeted intervention, and market reforms.
Best wishes for 2015.
SK [being Saman Kelegama Executive Director Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka No 100/20 Independence Avenue Colombo-07 Sri Lanka Tel 0094-11-2143100 or 2665068 Fax 0094-11-2665065 URL http://www.ips.lk]
