Growth that lasts, not just rebuilds View(s):Sri Lanka recorded a historic milestone in 2025: foreign remittances from migrant workers reached US$8 billion, the highest in 40 years of overseas employment. Sri Lanka is one of them among a few such countries in South and Southeast Asia. Yet, in the absence of credible export-led economic growth, Sri Lanka remains dependent on such makeshift sources of foreign exchange. Growth from recoveryAlthough the IMF and World Bank have not yet revised their growth forecast of around 3 per cent for Sri Lanka, the Central Bank projects 4–5 per cent, while the government’s 2026 Budget—before the cyclone—had ambitiously targeted 7 per cent medium-term growth. This means, though the country is able to achieve a moderately higher economic growth, we should know that a significant portion of that growth is due to recovery and reconstruction – nothing new.

Source: Sunday Times January 17, 2026 19:33 UTC