Why the Sri Lankan PM vowed to buy more fertilisers
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More fertiliser imports
As Sri Lanka braces for a food shortage amid its devastating economic crisis, prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has vowed to buy enough fertiliser for the next planting season to boost productivity. This is seens as an important move.
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What the PM tweeted
Wickremesinghe tweeted that while there may not be time to obtain fertiliser for the Yala (May-August) season, steps were being taken to ensure adequate stocks for the Maha (September-March) season. He urged everyone to accept the gravity of the situation.
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How the farm crisis unfolded
In April last year, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had decided to ban imports of chemical fertilisers to fave on foreign exchange. This drastically cut yields. Although the government later reversed the ban, no substantial imports have yet taken place.
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Food prices up
The resultant devastation in the agriculture sector added to Sri Lanka's economic woes. In April, food prices were up 46.6% year-on-year. Combined with acute shortages in fuel and cooking gas - because of dwindled forex reserves - households are staring down the barrel.
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Series of bad decisions
Populist tax cuts by the government of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother, Mahinda, rising oil prices, devastation in the tourism sector due to the pandemic, and the crisis in the agriculture sector due to import cuts - all combined to create the present mess in Sri Lanka.
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Can Wickremesinghe deliver?
A few days ago, the president replaced Mahinda with the experienced Wickremesinghe to pacify violent protesters who wanted both brothers because of the economic crisis. Wickremesinghe, accused of being a stooge of the brothers, now has a tough task on hand.