ECONOMYNEXT – Top Gulf airlines have not responded to Sri Lanka’s call to use the island nation’s Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA), Deputy Civil Aviation Minister said.

Janitha Ruwan Kodithuwakku said the state-run Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has informed Gulf airlines to use the airport.

“We have informed them to use the airport, but so far, no one has expressed any willingness to do so,” Deputy Minister Kodithuwakku told EconomyNext.

“We have informed all airlines to use this airport as needed, taking into account the difficulties they are currently facing. However, there has been no feedback or interest from their side.”

“This is because there is no capacity here to shift their [entire] operation. These are large airlines, aren’t they? So it is impossible for them to easily shift to Mattala. Mattala is, after all, an airport with a passenger capacity of about 1 million.”

He said the CAA has informed all airlines that Sri Lanka is ready to provide landing and parking free of charge if they require refuelling and transit.

“Yet, there has been no response to the invitations we sent; they have only expressed appreciation, and that is all.

He also rubbished media reports over Gulf representative team coming for discussions.

The Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA), famously dubbed “the world’s emptiest international airport,” continues to be a significant financial burden on Sri Lanka, accumulating over Rs. 39 billion in net losses over the last six years.

Built at a cost of US$209 million primarily through high-interest Chinese loans, the facility was designed to handle one million passengers annually but has recorded only a fraction of that, with expenditure often outstripping revenue by nearly 15 times.

The airport incurs a massive operational loss annually, driven by massive overheads and an annual interest cost of Rs. 2.05 billion on foreign debt.

Its failure to become a profitable hub is attributed to its remote location in Hambantota, far from the commercial center of Colombo, and a lack of consistent scheduled flights.

The financial bleeding persists despite several attempts to revitalize the airport through public-private partnerships (PPP).

Sri Lanka cancelled a 30-year management deal with an India-Russia joint venture (Shaurya Aeronautics and Airports of Regions) due to legal concerns and U.S. sanctions on the Indian partner.

A birthday celebration arranged inside the Colombo Crime Division (CCD) for a suspect held in connection with the murder of Ganemulla Sanjeewa has triggered a police misconduct investigation, with the Officer-in-Charge facing possible suspension.

Ishara Sewwandi, who is in CCD custody over allegations linked to the killing, turned 29 on Sunday.

A tip-off from a private informant, later confirmed by an intelligence officer, alerted Head of Colombo Range DIG Nishantha Soysa that a birthday event had been organised within the detention facility.

The DIG immediately instructed the OIC by telephone to halt the celebration and dispatched Senior Superintendent of Police Mahesh Kumarasinghe to the scene, before arriving himself to oversee the situation.

Investigations revealed that Sewwandi’s brother had brought in a cake, while her aunt and cousin had visited the premises for the occasion.

Arrangements had also been made to bring Sewwandi out of her cell to cut the cake.

A senior police officer said the OIC had given permission for the event, reportedly warning those involved not to take photographs to prevent them from circulating online.

Statements have since been recorded from around 15 individuals, including Sewwandi’s relatives and officers on duty at the time.

Investigators also found that the OIC had been in prior contact with Sewwandi’s brother, raising suspicions that the event had been facilitated and planned with police involvement.

DIG Soysa has instructed the Special Investigation Unit in writing to conduct an urgent inquiry into the OIC’s conduct.

ECONOMYNEXT – Tourist arrivals into Sri Lanka has fallen 18.1 percent in the first 25 days of March 2026, the official data showed, as escalation in the Middle East took the toll in the island nation’s peak tourist reason,

Total arrivals in the first 25 days dropped to 151,693 from 185,164 in the same time last year, posting an 18.1 percent drop, official data showed,

Sri Lanka has set ambitious target of 3 million arrivals for 2026, after missing the goal last year.

Foreign travelers, especially from the West, are often deterred by regional instability, even if the conflict is thousands of miles away from Colombo.

Analysts and economists say escalating Middle East tension could become a significant threat to Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, which is the primary engine of its post-crisis economic recovery.

The Gulf region, specifically hubs like Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi, serves as the critical transit point for over 60% of Sri Lanka’s high-spending tourists from Europe and North America.

With the closure of Iranian and Iraqi airspace and the suspension of flights by major carriers like Emirates, Qatar Airways, and Etihad due to safety concerns, the bridge connecting the West to the island is effectively broken.

For a tourist in London or Berlin, a flight that once took 11 hours with a seamless connection now faces indefinite delays or complex rerouting, leading to a wave of cancellations during what was expected to be a record-breaking winter season.

Beyond the logistics of transit, the tension directly impacts the high-spending segment.

Travelers from the Middle East itself, particularly from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, represent a lucrative market for Sri Lanka’s luxury villas and wellness retreats.

During times of regional conflict, these travellers tend to stay home or travel to ultra-safe short-haul destinations.

Furthermore, the global perception of regional instability often spills over; even though Sri Lanka is thousands of miles from the combat zone, Western travellers frequently perceive the entire Indian Ocean and Middle Eastern belt as a single risk zone.

This guilt by association can lead to a sharp decline in arrivals, regardless of the actual safety levels on the ground in Colombo or Galle.

The economic consequences of a tourism slump are immediate and severe.

Tourism is a fast-cash industry that brings in vital foreign exchange daily.

A drop in arrivals means lower occupancy for hotels, reduced income for thousands of tour drivers, and a decline in the Non-Food inflation relief the country was beginning to see.

If the tourism sector, the country’s third-largest foreign exchange earner, stalls due to Middle East hostilities, the government will find it increasingly difficult to maintain the Rupee’s stability and fund essential imports, potentially sliding the country back into a cycle of scarcity and high prices.

The Government is to continue with the existing fuel cost subsidy, under which the State currently bears Rs. 100 per litre of diesel and Rs. 20 per litre of petrol, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) not opposing it so far, the Energy Ministry stated.

Responding to queries by The Daily Morning yesterday (30) on whether the IMF had approved the continuation of the subsidy, Ministry Secretary Prof. Udayanga Hemapala said that the Fund had not objected to the arrangement at present. “We can continue the current arrangement. The IMF has not opposed it.”

Cabinet Spokesperson Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa said recently that the Government is currently absorbing about Rs. 20 billion per month to cushion the impact of fuel costs on consumers. He warned that if the Government is to bear the full cost of fuel imports, it would result in an additional annual expenditure of about United States Dollars 1.5 billion, placing significant pressure on the fuel sector and the national economy.

Speaking to The Daily Morning on an earlier occasion, Prof. Hemapala said that the Government planned to continue covering a portion of the fuel cost until 1 May, noting that any decision to extend the arrangement beyond that date would depend on developments in the Middle East and the IMF’s position on the matter. If the IMF approval is not granted, he said that the portion currently borne by the Government would have to be added to the fuel prices.