Connect with us

News

90% of 3rd graders in SL lack literacy & numeracy skills

Published

on

A survey has revealed that about 90 per cent of the 3rd grade children in Sri Lanka do not have sufficient literacy or numeracy skills due to the closure of schools during the ‘Covid-19’ pandemic, the Ministry of Education said. 

The ministry, which tested the children’s listening, speaking, reading, writing, numeracy and basic math skills, said that the children’s literacy skills were at 34 per cent and numeracy skills were as low as 7 per cent.

This information has been revealed in a survey conducted using 3rd grade children to find out the impact of school closures on children due to the ‘Covid-19 pandemic. It has been conducted using 10,000 3rd grade children as participants in 1,009 schools covering all provinces of Sri Lanka from December 2021 to January 2022.

(News Radio)

News

Special Unit at BIA to inform passengers of SriLankan flight delays

Published

on

By

Minister of Aviation Vijitha Herath has directed the Airport and Aviation Chairman and relevant officials to establish a Special Unit representing officials of the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) and SriLankan Airlines at the BIA premises, to coordinate and communicate flight delays.

This Special Unit at the BIA is to address domestic and foreign complaints regarding SriLankan Airline flight delays.

Minister Vijitha Herath made an observation tour of the BIA on Sunday (10) morning to investigate complaints about SriLankan Airline flight delays.

The Special Unit, which will operate 24/7, will provide passengers with instant updates on any flight delays and will further provide maximum facilities to all passengers at the BIA during flight delays.

Minister Vijitha Herath further instructed all relevant officials to work towards minimising any flight delays. Minister Vijitha Herath also instructed the authorities to provide reasonable solutions to problems in all aspects within the BIA premises.

(DailyNews)

(This story, originally published by DailyNews has not been edited by SLM staff)

Continue Reading

News

Govt. prioritizes relief for SMEs in SL

Published

on

By

A special meeting was held today (Nov. 11) at the Presidential Secretariat to address relief measures for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) facing financial challenges.

The meeting was led by the Senior Additional Secretary to the President for Finance and Economic Affairs, Mr. G. N. R. D. Aponsu, and included officials from the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and Sri Lanka Banks’ Association (Guarantee) Limited.

The discussions focused on the financial difficulties encountered by SMEs due to loan obligations.

Currently, debt recovery processes under the Parate law have been temporarily suspended for SMEs, with this suspension set to expire on December 15. The meeting considered potential steps that could be taken before the expiration date to further support struggling SMEs.

Attendees examined ways for the banking sector to provide additional support to SMEs and boost productivity in the economy. During the discussions, it was also decided to compile a comprehensive report on the loans taken by SMEs from banks. This report will serve as a basis for designing future relief measures.

Additionally, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka and various commercial banks are evaluating the steps needed for the temporary suspension of debt recovery under the Parate law for SME loans.

The discussion was attended by several key officials, including Mrs. R. R. S. De Silva Jayathilake, Director of Bank Supervision at the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and Mr. A. M. A. D. Amarakoon, Senior Assistant Director at the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. Also present were representatives from the Sri Lanka Banks’ Association (Guarantee) Limited: Mr. Indrajith Boyagoda, Secretary General; Mr. Dilshan Rodrigo, Chief Executive Officer of Union Bank; Mr. Manoj Akmeemana, Senior Deputy General Manager of Sampath Bank; Mr. Sampath Perera, Deputy General Manager of Bank of Ceylon; Mr. Nalin Samaranayake, Assistant General Manager of Commercial Bank; Mr. Nirosh Perera, Chief Recovery and Rehabilitation Officer of Hatton National Bank; and Mr. Bingumal Thewarathanthri, Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank.

(President’s Media Division)

Continue Reading

BIZ

CSE to close early on Nov. 14 for Gen. election

Published

on

By

The Colombo Stock Exchange has stated their decision to close the market early in view of the Parliamentary Election. 

Therefore, trading hours will be from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Thursday (Nov. 14).

Regular trading hours will resume on Monday, 18th November 2024.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2024 Sri Lanka Mirror. All Rights Reserved