LONDON (Reuters) : FIFA’s former director of international relations Jerome Champagne has suggested changes in the world governing body to help end a perception it is run by self-interested men who do not care enough about the game. The erudite 53-year-old Frenchman, who left FIFA suddenly two years ago, has now broken his silence since ...

NEW YORK (Reuters) : Welcome to the era of the candid consumer.From their food allergies to home addresses, shoppers around the world are becoming increasingly willing to share more personal information with their favorite merchants, as they look for a more personalized and efficient shopping experience, an IBM survey of more than 28,000 people in ...

LONDON (Reuters): Mass euro zone ratings downgrades are unlikely to shake up investors too much, but with Greek debt talks at an impasse, pressure has been loaded on the bloc to shore up its defences and glimmers of optimism from last week have been firmly doused.  With the United States and Japan already downgraded from ...

Lack of participation in decision makingTop-down decision-making, centralisation of power and authority, lack of consultation with stakeholders, lack of accountability and the arrogance of political power are all factors which featured heavily in the socioeconomic environment of 2011 in Sri Lanka, mainly due to the lack of public consultation in the decision-making process. As Nobel ...

Kenyan Laban Moiben and Netsanet Abeyo of Ethiopia yesterday respectively won the men’s and women’s contest in the 9th Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, rated Asia’s most valuable. A record 2,475 Indian and global athletes including Sri Lanka’s Rueina Deepani and Indika Ratnayake vied for the popular event, which has received IIAF Gold label status. However, ...

GFI, a leading brokerage service provider, has signed a new three-year contract as title sponsor of the HKFC Tens rugby tournament, kicking off with the 2012 edition from March 21-22. The contract runs through 2014 and will extend GFI’s title sponsorship of the international tournament to nine years, having supported the event since 2006 and ...

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Reuters): Americans have traditionally been the most enthusiastic champions of capitalism. Yet a recent American public opinion survey found that just 50 per cent of people had a positive opinion of capitalism while 40 per cent did not. The disillusionment was particularly marked among young people 18-29, African Americans and Hispanics, those with ...

Reuters: The women’s draw for the Australian Open is resembling the march of the walking wounded, with more than a quarter of the top 25 ruled out or carrying injuries into the year’s first grand slam. Top seed Caroline Wozniacki joined the long list of injured players when she strained her left wrist in her ...

People’s Merchant Plc yesterday announced three additions to its Board of Directors with effect from 6 January 2012. They are Tushan Wickramasinghe, G. Ramanan and Anil P. Weerasinghe Tushan Wickramasinghe who holds an MBA from Edith Cowen University Australia is the Chairman of Capital Trust Holdings (Pvt) Ltd. and the Managing Director of Capital Trust ...

Looking back at 2011, DFCC Vardhana Bank (DVB), the everyday banking unit of DFCC Bank had a productive year in terms of profitability, asset growth, with a number of milestones being achieved, awards won and expansion in the bank’s products and services. The entirety of the bank’s activities focused on one goal: financial inclusion, which ...

Rotating Savings and Credit Associations and the Finance Business Act No. 42 of 2011Cheetu or Rotating Savings and Credit Associations (RoSCAs) are the world over a well-recognised method of savings and capital accumulation for the poor and marginalised. Advocate E.B. Wikramanayake B.A., in his Legal Dictionary for Ceylon (1948 Edition) describes a cheetu club as ...

The 10th edition of Dharman’s Media Guide of Sri Lanka was issued last week.  A publication of the Sri Lanka Environmental Journalists Forum it is one of the most popular and leading media guides in Sri Lanka edited by senior journalist Dharman Wickremaratne.  First published in 2000, it is the country’s only media guide updated ...

SYDNEY (Reuters): Australia, inspired by captain Michael Clarke, crushed India by an innings and 68 runs in the second test at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Friday to take a dominant 2-0 lead in the four-match series. Clarke’s mammoth unbeaten 329 in Australia’s 659 for four declared, combined with another display of aggressive pace bowling, ...

sports.ndtv.com: Colombo: Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has approached the BCCI about the possibility of hosting IPL matches, the new SLC president, Upali Dharmadasa, has said. The idea has been proposed as a way for SLC to raise additional revenue because the Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) failed to get off the ground last year, after ...

2012 has arrived and if we are to go by Mayan predictions, this is the year that the world will come to an end – to be precise 11-and-a-half months from now, on 21 December. This year I got many wishes reminding me of the impending doom and how one must look at the year ...

Sampath Bank with effect from 1 January has got a new Chairman and several new youthful additions to its Board of Directors. The Bank announced on Friday that at a Board of Directors meeting held on 29 December Chairman I.W. Senanayake decided to step down with effect from 31 December. Whilst accepting this decision the ...

(Reuters): Samsung Electronics Co, Sharp Corp and five other makers of liquid crystal displays agreed to pay more than $553 million to settle consumer and state regulatory claims that they conspired to fix prices for LCD panels in televisions, notebook computers and monitors. The settlement is the latest arising from lawsuits alleging the creation of ...

By Manoj Ridimahaliyadda espncricinfo.com: Sidath Wettimuny, the former Sri Lanka batsman, has suggested a radical restructuring of the country’s domestic cricket structure, which involves promoting provinces over clubs. The financial uncertainty surrounding Sri Lankan cricket and the upcoming board elections could, however, overshadow Wettimuny’s proposal. As a member of Sri Lanka Cri...

 Tendulkar thwarted again in quest for 100th century Dravid and Sehwag also in the runs for India Australia dismissed for 333 MELBOURNE (Reuters): Australia paceman Peter Siddle deflated a nation of a billion people when he bowled Sachin Tendulkar for 73 in the last over, but India’s fluent batting helped the tourists seize control of ...

Reuters: Tens of thousands of flag-waving and chanting protesters called on Saturday for a disputed parliamentary election to be rerun and an end to Vladimir Putin’s rule, increasing pressure on the Russian leader as he tries to win back the presidency. The protesters shouted “Russia without Putin” and “New elections, New elections” as one speaker ...

By Dinali Goonewardene Prathilaba was telecast on Rupavahini on Sundays at 10 a.m. The TV documentary, a studio discussion on investing in the stock market was commissioned by the Securities and Exchange Commission and panellists from the stock market industry participated. These included stock brokers, research analysts, fund managers and officials from the Colombo Stock ...

Edna Group of Ceylon, one of the largest conglomerates in Sri Lanka, has tied up with Dialog Enterprise to provide mobile communication solutions to the group, which includes Dialog BizConnect; an APN (Access Point Network) solution, allowing sales teams to give real time updates from the field. Dialog BizConnect APN (Access Point Network) Solution by ...

Reuters: North Korean leader Kim Jong-il died of a heart attack while on a train trip, state media reported on Monday, sparking immediate concern over who is in control of the reclusive state and its nuclear programme. A tearful television announcer dressed in black said the 69-year-old had died on Saturday of physical and mental ...

Hellmann Worldwide Logistics, one of the world’s largest logistics providers, became an integral part of the South Asian Apparel Leadership Forum 2011. The prestigious forum where global and local apparel heavyweights gathered to discuss the future of Sri Lanka’s apparel industry was organised as a part of SL design festival. Hellmann, an international logistics giant ...

New Delhi (IANS): It was a double whammy for Nimbus Sports Monday. The Indian cricket board terminated its telecast rights contract for defaulting on paymentments and it was also forced to put off its much-touted World Series Hockey (WSH) till after the Olympic qualifiers in February. There was speculation for quite some time that Nimbus ...

By Marianne David The perfect place to have a wild and wonderful time while wallowing in the lap of luxury, Elephant Corridor is a paradise of pleasure and pampering. Offering complete privacy given its secluded location in the heart of the jungle and guaranteed to satisfy the most demanding guest, the hotel is a sight ...

True to its efforts to increase the awareness and importance of bone health amongst women, Anlene recently launched its first ‘Asthi Shakthi Kantha Shakthi Movement’ activity camp in Colombo. The Movement, announced earlier this month, is championed by cricket legend, Kumar Sangakkara and his wife Yehali, aims to highlight good bone health through a series ...

Intel Sri Lanka last week celebrated the culmination of its fifth year supporting education through IT in Sri Lanka with its ‘Education Pavilion’ at Infotel 2011 which was opened by Minister of Education Bandula Gunawardena. Infotel, the biennial IT exhibition dubbed the ‘premier’ IT exhibition in Sri Lanka, is known to showcase the latest and ...

Deep in the heart of an ancient kingdom, snug in a rural setting is a luxurious abode for those who seek the serenity of wilderness without having to give up on the creature comforts of urban living. Imagine a little ‘palace’ all to oneself. King sized beds, the softest linen, the fluffiest pillows, comfiest sofas, ...

LONDON (Reuters): Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani was quoted on Thursday as saying Islamists were likely to represent the next wave of political power in the Arab world and that the West should embrace them. Thani said in an interview with the Financial Times that moderate Islamists could assist in fighting what ...