Walking the talk on reforms: First step to Lankan recovery

Originally appeared on The Morning.

By Dhananath Fernando

Often we all see the world the way we want to see it, and not as it is. Sri Lanka’s economic crisis is also seen by many people through their own perception of reality.

In previous years, we believed that self-sufficiency, State-led industrialisation, State-centred economic planning, and more recently, Modern Monetary Theory, were the way forward for our economy. The current crisis has shown that none of that has really helped us; by contrast, it has exacerbated a poor situation to where we are today.

Next comes the question of overcoming the crisis. This has to be analysed with context; the most significant piece of context is that we are facing the worst situation we’ve been in since independence in 1948 – and it is only getting worse.

There are some suggestions to increase industrialisation, improve exports and the trade balance, and incentivise Foriegn Direct Investments (FDIs). However, it is of no use to have lofty goals of industrialisation when we can hardly provide an uninterrupted electricity supply.

Foreign investors are planning to leave. Investors are by no means considering entering the country. Thus, potential solutions have to be evaluated based on this context. Simply having a wishlist of suggestions with minimal viability will add very little value at this juncture. We need rational solutions to solve the crisis immediately, rather than policies that can only be enacted in times of relative normalcy.

The Government needs to bring its finances into a sustainable state. Revenue must increase and expenditure should be reduced. Reducing the losses of State enterprises is a way to reduce the deficit without touching social expenditure.

With that in mind, here are a few suggestions for reform:

1. Privatise SriLankan Airlines

At a time when people are struggling to feed their families and when our official usable reserves are less than $ 200 million, there are very few upsides to running a fully State-owned airline making losses equivalent to the value of our entire Samurdhi scheme, which, despite its flaws, is the main social safety net in Sri Lanka. Privatisation will provide strong signals that we are serious about reforms.

For the last 15 years, we have not made any profits on SriLankan Airlines. We can disclose all finances and ask for interested companies to buy it outright with assets and liabilities. Having a higher liability than assets is the main problem in this instance. With the suspension of debt repayment of State enterprises, Treasury guarantees for the State are on hold at the moment.

Even if we need to pay a certain amount to the buyer to take it off our hands and sell it off with staff, it is much better than keeping the enterprise in-house and incurring colossal losses repeatedly. The new buyer can be given the responsibility of staff restructuring. We can follow the playbook through which Air India was sold outright by the Modi Government. Our airline is unfortunately no longer an asset but a liability to our national coffers.

However, it is not only the National Airline that makes losses. There are many institutes that add little value to the public, make massive losses, and are a very high burden on the Treasury. Some of these public enterprises are classified as ‘strategic’ and others as ‘non-strategic,’ but two things they have in common is that, more often than not, they make substantial losses and have very limited transparency.

There were some discussions to revive Sri Lankan Airlines by appointing business leaders with a profit motive, converting it to a budget airline, and appointing committees to reform and restructure. We have run out of time to even attempt these options. Unfortunately, hard times require hard decisions and we do not have the time, money, or options to avoid them.

With interest rates and Treasury bill interest rates reaching above 20%, running loss-making enterprises on borrowed money will make our local debt increasingly unstable the more we delay reforms. Most importantly, we don’t need to wait for pressure from creditors or the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to kickstart reforms; we can begin them now.

2. Better utilisation of idle assets

Improving service efficiency and increasing revenue of railways through Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) have to be the way forward for better utilisation of idle assets.

Sri Lanka Railways is categorised as a department of the Government, even though it is actually a State-Owned Enterprise. Sri Lanka Railways holds a considerable amount of State land which is used very unproductively.

Fort Railway Station, Maradana Railway Station, and the surrounding land along the track between these two stations are prime examples. Major railway stations such as Kollupitiya, Wellawatte, and Bambalapitiya are all prime beachfront properties which are very poorly maintained and completely underutilised. Land prices in Colombo are extremely high. There are plenty of such examples under the Railways Department with zero or negative value addition to our economy. Sri Lanka Railways first has to be made a State-Owned Enterprise, and then the sector needs to be opened for private sector investment.

In the past, some train compartments were operated by private players and it was a very successful and lucrative business model. If we eliminate the State railway monopoly and open up the time table, tracks, and properties to the private sector, we can cut down on our fuel consumption significantly, provide a convenient service to passengers, and even turn a loss-making liability into a revenue-generating asset.

Given the very high energy prices at present – which are only set to increase – many people need the option of efficient and robust public transit infrastructure. In any case, the majority of people in Sri Lanka cannot afford to purchase and operate personal vehicles, and trains have been the main source of transportation in areas where they are available.

It is also of paramount importance that the most vulnerable segments of the population benefit from a rehauled cash transfer system, which should cover the energy price component in public transport. Everyone, regardless of their socio-economic stratification, should be given a fair chance to compete in life.

However, it should be emphasised that these two steps alone will not help overcome the crisis. However, it is a good start to get the wheels rolling on reforms. These reforms will provide an unambiguous signal to investors and the world that we are no longer a NATO (No Action, Talk Only) nation, but a nation that walks the talk.

The opinions expressed are the author’s own views. They may not necessarily reflect the views of the Advocata Institute or anyone affiliated with the institute.