Browsing Background, Briefing, Policy Notes and Working Papers by Title
Now showing items 1-20 of 25
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Accepting e-documents with e-signatures: A small step for government, a giant leap for the country
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2017-02)The room for exporters to improve their competitiveness by reducing time to export is significantly constrained by the procedures and processing time imposed by Sri Lankan border agencies. Sri Lanka can improve the ... -
Accountability: Why the Sri Lankan Economy Collapsed and How to Revive it
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2025-07)This paper argues that the root cause of Sri Lanka’s 2022 economic collapse lies not merely in recent missteps, but in long-standing policies that weakened citizens’ ability to hold their government responsible. Despite ... -
The Alternatives to Universal Tax Registration in Sri Lanka
(Colombo: Verite Research, 2023-02)This note argues that the Sri Lankan government’s recent proposal to implement universal tax registration is neither a viable nor effective strategy to increase the country’s tax revenue. Instead, the note proposes four ... -
Apparel Exports from Sri Lanka to the EU : A Product Level Analysis of the Impact of GSP+
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2022-09)Concerns about Sri Lanka losing GSP+ concessions resurfaced with the EU parliament passing a resolution on June 10th, 2021, calling the EU Commission and the European External Action Service (EEAS) to use GSP+ as leverage ... -
Backwards in Blacklisting : Gaps in Sri Lanka’s Procurement Framework Enable Corruption
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2023-11)This brief critically evaluates Sri Lanka’s public procurement system. It highlights two significant gaps: the legal gap, where procurement guidelines don’t allow for blacklisting contractors/suppliers involved in fraud ... -
Borrowing from Peter to Pay Paul: Measuring the Commercial Debt Burden Created by Concessional Debt
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2025-02)The paper develops an analytical method and metric for evaluating the extent to which a nation’s budget support commercial debt is necessitated by the obligation to repay concessional project loans of the past. This is ... -
The Desirability of Domestic Debt Restructuring
(Colombo: Verite Research, 2022-10)Sri Lanka faces a challenge to emerge from the continuing economic crisis of unsustainable public debt. This paper sets out four important reasons to undertake an early domestic debt restructuring (DDR), by way of reprofiling ... -
Facilitating the Registration of Trademarks : A Step towards Creating Internationally Recognised Sri Lankan Brands
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2017-02)The Madrid Protocol is a simplified global system for registering trademarks abroad. It eases trademark registration abroad for Sri Lankan businesses. Sri Lanka was looking to complete accession to the Madrid Protocol by ... -
FCTC Evaluation : Sri Lanka’s Compliance with Article 6 - Price and Tax Measures to Reduce the Demand for Tobacco
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2016-08)This briefing note evaluates Sri Lanka’s compliance with Article 6 of the FCTC through its existing policies on tobacco control. Section 2 of the briefing note provides an overview to Article 6 of the FCTC and its ... -
Foregoing Competition to Secure Funding for Public Infrastructure: One third of funding secured was non-concessional
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2023-07-04)In 2010, Sri Lanka established a unique framework, overseen by the Standing Cabinet Appointed Review Committee (SCARC), to handle unsolicited proposals (USPs) for public infrastructure funding. These USPs inherently bypass ... -
Forensic Audit of Central Bank 2019: Assessment of losses to the EPF
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2025-02)This note examines the bond and equity market forensic audit reports to ascertain the scale of the EPF’s losses in the past. It also highlights a significant underestimation of the actual losses, as the forensic audit ... -
Improving National Budget Practices : Solutions for a Professional Government
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2020-02)Verité Research conducted a forum on ” Improving National Budget Practices: Solutions for a Professional Government” on the 27th of February 2020 at Hilton Colombo. At this forum it discussed how the government can improve ... -
Looking beyond the Economic Transformation Bill: Three Steps Sri Lanka Can Take to Increase the Supply of High-Quality Investment Zones
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2024-07)This note proposes three steps Sri Lanka could take to construct and manage high quality Investment Zones, drawing from regional and global best practices. First, is enacting a separate, overarching legislation to ... -
Natural Disaster Insurance Coverage : Solving the Lethargy on Language Policy Will Help SMEs Island-wide
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2018-04)Despite an increasing number of natural disasters in recent years, Sri Lanka suffers from a limited uptake of natural disaster insurance coverage. Sri Lanka’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are especially vulnerable ... -
A Novel Governance - Linked Bond : As a Pareto Improving Instrument for Debt Restructuring
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2024-06)This working paper outlines the technical and incentive dynamics for a proposed new sovereign debt instrument designed for countries with high country risk premiums, where this risk is, ceteris paribus, correlated with the ... -
Opening up Trade Data: The Benefits to Sri Lanka
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2020-06)International trade data are the foundational basis when formulating trade policies and assessing their impacts. Trade data is vital for firms engaging in international trade to make sound business decisions. Unfortunately, ... -
Proposal for a Governance-Linked Bond in Restructing Sri Lanka's Debt - Version 3
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2024-02)To address the governance risk to debt sustainability and provide incentives for the Government of Sri Lanka to implement governance reforms, this proposal sets out the structure of a novel sovereign debt instrument that ... -
Reducing Domestic Barriers to Export Success : Simplifying and Rationalising the Exporter Registration Process is Critical
(Colombo: Verité Research, 2018-04)Export promotion has been a key policy objective of successive governments of Sri Lanka. The Government aims to double the value of exports to USD 20 billion by 2020. Currently, the government is taking measures to improve ... -
Restoring Efficient Tax Collection Methods: Withholding Tax and Pay-As-You-Earn
(Colombo: Verite Research, 2022-06)The note estimates the additional revenue that can be collected from reinstating in Sri Lanka two methods of efficient tax collection that were discontinued in 2020. That is: the withholding tax (WHT) and the pay-as-you-earn ... -
Reviewing the Data Dissemination Practices of Sri Lanka’s Department of Census and Statistics
(2021-02)In 2014, a data dissemination policy was introduced by the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) in Sri Lanka. The DCS is the primary agency responsible for the collection, compilation and dissemination of official ...