The Pathfinder Foundation presented President Gotabaya Rajapaksa with a report named Pathfinder beyond the box: A new economic vision for post-COVID-19 Sri Lanka, containing a set of action-oriented recommendations from an eminent persons study group aimed at steering Sri Lanka into a post-COVID-19 era of economic recovery.

Sri Lanka’s overall focus of economic policy should be on mitigating the hardship of the people, moving towards restoring economic stability in the short-run and improving the investment climate for business, the group suggests.

Improving food security and livelihoods by modernizing agricultural systems and well-targeted social protection In practical terms, doing whatever it takes to find the monies for debt payments and financing social welfare. Furthermore, cutting red tape and promoting digitization of public services to allow the private sector to diversify and to create jobs and better institutional coordination for implementing economic policies and development projects, the report further suggested.

The study group was chaired by Pathfinder Senior Fellow and former Central Bank Governor, Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy. Dr. Sisira Pinnawala, Department of the Sociology University of Peradeniya, and Dr. Ganeshan Wignaraja, Executive Director of the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute of International Relations and Strategic Studies, served as the principal authors for this initiative.

Other members of the study group, included twenty leaders from academia, research and the private sector, including Prof. Sirimal Abeyratne, Dr. Sujata Gamage, Dr. Dileni Guawardena, Prof. Ariyaratne Herath, Prof. Saroj Jayasinghe, Prof. Mallika Pinnawala, Prof. Rohan Samarajiva, Mr. Krishan Balendra, Mr. Nimal Cooke, Mr. Sheran Fernando, Mr. Diren Hallock, Mr. Jiang Houliang, Mr. Murtaza Jafferjee, Mr. Mohamed Mushin, Mr. Ashroff Omar, Mr. Arun Pathak, Mr. Suren Ratwatte, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya, Mr. Mangala Boyagoda, Mr. M H Jamaldeen, Mr. Ahilan Kadirgamar, Dr. Nilanga Samarasinghe and Mr. Rajendra Theagarajah.

Mr. Nimal Cooke, Group Director TCMOL

Prof. Rohan Samarajiva (front), Mr. Murtaza Jafferjee (middle)

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