The Hon. Anura Karunathilaka - Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Speaker, first, on the Adjournment Motion. Some Opposition Members claimed regional peers managed their fuel crises better—citing India. I refer to the Times of India’s live updates: “14 held as violence erupts between customers and LPG agency staff in Uttar Pradesh; 1000 cylinders seized in 200 raids in Chhattisgarh,” and so on. They update hourly on the severity of India’s fuel crisis. Sri Lanka has not reached that level. So, criticism should be informed.

¶ 02 The opening line of the Motion says: “In the critical environment that has emerged in the country, people’s lives in all sectors are under challenge.” That overstates the situation.

¶ 03 A nation’s crisis can arise in several ways. One is when expenditure exceeds revenue. Excluding debt capital repayments, our primary balance in 2022 was a deficit of around 3–4 percent of GDP during the crisis; by 2024 it improved to a 1.78 trillion rupee surplus, and by 2025 to 5.3 percent of GDP. This indicates improvement, not crisis.

¶ 04 On foreign exchange: in 2025 we earned US$ 3.2 billion from tourism, up 1.6 percent; remittances were US$ 8.076 billion, up 22.8 percent; exports were US$ 17.2 billion, up 5.6 percent. Official reserves are US$ 7.284 billion, versus US$ 1.9 billion at the 2022 crisis trough. So, this is not a forex crisis.

¶ 05 On inflation: from 49.72 percent in 2022 to 16.54 percent in 2023 to 2.18 percent in 2025; currently around 5 percent—again, not a monetary crisis. While some prices rose, there are no widespread shortages with mass queues except in fuel due to external factors.

¶ 06 Crises can also stem from wrong policies, e.g., the abrupt shift to organic fertilizer, or drastic VAT/PAYE cuts in 2022 reducing revenue. Such errors contributed earlier. But today’s challenges are not from new policy mistakes.

¶ 07 Another cause could be non-revenue-generating mega projects financed by heavy borrowing, trapping a country in debt. That is not the immediate trigger now.

¶ 08 Nor is this a political instability crisis. Economic indicators show strengthening. Our response after the “Ditha” cyclone demonstrated administrative capacity and political stability.

¶ 09 So where does today’s pressure come from? External shocks. During COVID-19, global economies suffered. Likewise, wars outside our control impact supply chains, especially energy. The Middle East conflict disrupted supply lines for fuel and energy; that is the current source of pressure.

¶ 10 Our task is to minimize the burden on the economy and society, and to maintain essential public services—health, public transport, education—with minimal impact. We must keep economic activity going, not shut it down. Therefore, we will ensure energy supply for agriculture, industry, ports, and airports, while placing temporary limits—through mechanisms like the QR quota—on non-essential consumption and leisure travel, under a social compact.

¶ 11 We have established four key committees: an Energy Committee led by the Foreign Minister to secure fuel, gas, and coal—identifying suppliers and urgent procurements; a committee under the Prime Minister to ensure uninterrupted, efficient public services; a distribution oversight committee under Hon. Bimal Rathnayake to keep supply chains flowing; and a social protection committee under Hon. Upali Pannilage to support vulnerable groups.

¶ 12 We will release pressure gradually and provide targeted relief when needed. The President also indicated readiness to reduce fuel taxes at the appropriate moment. We have a plan and are executing it.

¶ 13 Crises also present opportunities: markets considered safe tourist destinations have become risky; we can position Sri Lanka as a stable alternative. Some Middle Eastern airports that serve as hubs between Asia and Europe are affected; we can leverage our strategic location to enhance Colombo as an intermediate aviation hub. Similarly, our ports can grow as transit hubs along key maritime supply lanes; we can expand re-export and consolidation services.

¶ 14 This debate shows both how we intend to manage the situation and, unfortunately, the immaturity of some Opposition rhetoric. We acknowledge the difficulty. We cannot control external events, but with a structured plan and actions, we are addressing the challenge.

¶ 15 Thank you.