As per projections released by the United Nations, China’s working-age population, defined as those aged between 15 and 64, will start declining rapidly in the 2030s and will shrink by more than 60 per cent to 378 million by the end of the century, according to The Star, a Malaysia-based publication. The country’s working-age population declined […]

Institutions remain the most important factor for strengthening productivity and the investment climate in a country. Good governance, rule of law, and socio-political stability are crucial determinants of long-run economic growth. As famously described by Douglas North, “Institutions are the rules of the game in a society; more formally, they are the humanly devised constraints […]

By Jehan Perera The passage of the budget by a comfortable majority confirms that the government’s parliamentary majority is holding in the face of adverse circumstances. The ruling party has lost over twenty of its members who no longer follow the party line. But the rest of them appear to be staying together despite the […]

By D. L. Sirimanne I dreamt I was the Radio Officer on a KLM Super Constellation flight to Colombo with a Dutch crew. Flight Information sent us a ‘red alert’ that Colombo Airport was closed and to divert the flight to Jaffna. I immediately informed the Captain and he accordingly altered heading to Jaffna. I […]

By Shamindra Ferdinando Narendra Fernando, Sergeant-at-Arms of the crisis-ridden Parliament, has declared that the largest number of students, in the post-independence era, visited the House on Thursday (Dec. 01). Director, Legislative Services, Janakantha Silva, who is also the Acting Director of Communication, quoted Fernando as having said that approximately 5,000 students, from 32 schools, rec...