Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa

The liquidity deficit in the domestic money market, which remained significantly high during the first half of 2022, declined in the latter part of 2022. However, in spite of the improvements in money market liquidity conditions, market interest rates continued to remain high, partly due to subdued activity in the domestic money markets. At the same time, it has been observed that several Licensed Commercial Banks (LCBs) have continued to depend excessively on the overnight Standing Facilities under Open Market Operations (OMOs) of the Central Bank without considering market based funding options to address their structural liquidity needs. Such LCBs have not indicated any signs of taking remedial actions to reduce the over dependence on overnight facilities offered by the Central Bank, which are available to be used as fall back options after utilizing all other funding options. Such behaviour of LCBs affects the efforts of the Central Bank to reactivate the money markets, primarily the interbank call money market and the repo market, while posing a threat to smooth channeling of funds in the economy with a possibility of clogging the payment and settlement systems.

Press Release from Central Bank of Sri Lanka

The Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa commenced work for the year 2023 with a ceremony held at the High Commission premises on Monday 02 January 2023.

Delivering the Country Statement at the High Level Segment of COP 15, High Commissioner Harsh Kumara Navaratne  reiterated  that  “Sri Lanka is always  ready to stand  with the  international community  for a healthy and  sustainable planet”.

He stated that despite its small size, Sri Lanka is endowed with a wide variety of ecosystems and is one of the most biologically diverse countries in the Asian region with varied climate and topography and high taxonomic diversity.  With a high degree of biospecies multifariousness, Sri Lanka is also increasingly being subjected to biodiversity loss. Therefore, he emphasized the need to have in place effective instruments and mechanisms to safeguard the biodiversity status quo of island nations like Sri Lanka and recognized the Glolitter Partnership to enhance regional cooperation to support the transition of maritime transport and fisheries sectors towards a low plastics future. 

Speaking of achievements, High Commissioner Navaratne stated that Sri Lanka spearheaded the UN Global campaign on sustainable nitrogen management in 2019 addressing a major cause for biodiversity loss and habitat destruction. He added that Sri Lanka also leads the Commonwealth countries as the champion of the Mangrove Restoration.  On commitments, he said that Sri Lanka supported the Kunming declaration to accelerate the actions towards achieving the 2050 Vision for Biodiversity and support the upcoming Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework with more realistic and implementable national plans and strengthening south-south, north-south and triangular cooperation in the coming decade. 

High Commissioner Navaratne,  is heading the Sri Lanka delegation at the ongoing COP-15 and concurrent meetings of the parties to the Cartagena and Nagoya Protocols and the Fifth Meeting of the Working Group on the Post - 2022 Global Biodiversity Framework which started on  6 December 2O22 in Montreal, Canada.  The meetings are scheduled to end on 19^th December 2022. 

The in-person delegation include Ms. Pathmalatha Amarakoon, Director, Bio-Diversity Secretariat , Ms. Lumbini Kiriella, Chief Legal Officer from the Ministry of Environment, Ms. Lashinka Dammullage, Counsellor of the Sri Lanka High Commission while other delegates connected virtually from Sri Lanka.

The full text of the Statement is attached.

Sri Lanka High Commission

Ottawa

16^th December 2022