Marking International Day for Biodiversity today (22nd May), Dilani Hirimuthugodage looks at the Sri Lankan interventions in the wake of its ratification of the International Convention on Biological Diversity 19 years ago. She asserts that concrete steps must be taken soon if Sri Lanka is to safeguard its rich bio diversity, in the midst of the rapid development taking place.

In an independent and incisive take on Sri Lanka’s current external stability position, IPS Deputy Director argues that the build-up of external payments stress is a cumulative process, where the lines between external public debt, public-guaranteed external debt, and private sector external debt become blurred, and virtually disappear at times of external payments crises. The most prudent strategy to insulate an economy from rising exposure to foreign debt is to ensure a healthy growth in earnings from exports of goods and services, and build-up a ‘war chest’ of non-borrowed official reserves.

Based on a new Working Paper by IPS researchers titled ‘Incentivizing Foreign Investment in Sri Lanka and the Role of Tax Incentives’, this article argues that a key medium-term challenge facing the country is to find a balance between providing a competitive tax incentives regime to attract FDI and keeping tax foregone to a minimum in order to preserve domestic revenue.

In the wake of the execution of Sri Lankan housemaid Rizana Nafeek on 9th February 2013, accused of smothering an infant in her care in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the human rights of migrant workers have come to the forefront of the policy discussion on migration. This article discusses what the next step needs to be in developing a comprehensive governing framework for migrant labour, and argues that collective action is the strongest tool in the arsenal of sending countries in protecting migrant workers.

G.D. Dayaratne of the Health Economics Policy Unit of IPS writes a special feature article marking World Health Day (7th April). He argues that it is exceedingly important that the public dismisses the false notion that PPPs will lead to the privatization of the public health care delivery system. Public health authorities have a responsibility to reap the benefits from PPP arrangements, in order to reduce cost, share resources, provide quality assurance, and increase the efficiency of the healthcare delivery system without compromising on equity and fairness. Hence, institutional changes may be required in both the public and private sectors, to better fulfill their social mandate and provide quality health services to the people of the country.