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Item Effects of environmental regulations on South Asian food and agricultural exports: a gravity analysis(United Nations, 2014-01) Wijesinghe, W.P.A.S.Regardless of the occasional dissenting voices, free trade is now being embraced by many of the nations of the world. South Asian countries joined the global consensus for frictionless trade by forming regional trade blocs under the banner of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). However, intra- and interregional trade in SAARC has not yet reached the desired stage, and a range of empirical studies have therefore been carried out with the objective of determining the causes. This current study is also motivated by the poor performance of the South Asian countries in world trade and it investigates the effects of environmental regulation on the food and agricultural trade of four South Asian nations, i.e., Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. For this study, the Gravity Model for international trade analysis was used with country- and time-specific fixed effects followed by Heckman sample selection model to avoid possible biases that are widely cited in the gravity literature. Trade data were retrieved from Trade Map while data for other gravity variables were retrieved from relevant recognized data sources. The Environmental Performance Index (EPI) was utilized as a proxy measure for the environmental regulation of the four SAARC nations and their trade partners to denote environmental regulation of reporting and partner countries. The results of the coefficient estimates revealed that even though there appears to be a relationship between stringent regulations and foreign trade without these specific effects, its significance fades as soon as both the importing and exporting country-specific effects are taken into considerationItem Labour migration in South Asia lessons from covid 19(2020) Weeraratne, BileshaItem 'South Asia: Performance, Challenges and Prospects'(2013-10-03) Wijesinha, AnushkaA presentation on the key competitiveness indicators in South Asia, with a focus on employment and private sector development, for the International Labour Organization Employer Organization's Meeting, October 2011, Colombo, Sri LankaItem Regional Economic Cooperation And Connectivity In South And South-West Asia: Potential And Challenges(2013-10-01) Kelegama, Saman; Abayasekara, AshaniAlthough South and South-West Asian countries helped drive global economic recovery in 2010,this study suggests that economic integration and cooperation in the sub-region is low and below potential, especially compared to East Asia. Not only do additional possibilities exist for mutually beneficial cooperation, but regional economic integration and cooperation is also essential if the sub-region is to sustain its growth momentum, and address its key development challenges in future. This process involves enhancing intra-regional trade; removing obstacles to inter-regional trade in services; allowing a freer movement of labor; developing deeper and more crisis-resilient financial markets; and coordinating appropriate monetary and fiscal policies. Enhancing regional connectivity is a multifaceted task that requires the implementation of bold policy initiatives at the national and regional levels, and in many different areas. Such a task could sustain the sub-region's dynamism in decades to come andreduce the wide disparities in economic opportunities within and across South and South-West Asian countries.Item Interprecting SDGS for South Asia: in search of a regional framework-the case of Sri Lanka(United Nations ESCAP, 2019-11) Tilakaratna, Ganga; Sooriyamudali, ChinthaniThis study examines the scope for South Asian regional cooperation to further the implementation of the SDGs in Sri Lanka. The study provides an overview of the status of the 17 SDGs in Sri Lanka and discusses the SDG implementation challenges within the national context. It identifies SDG regional cooperation priorities for Sri Lanka, particularly with regard to climate action, energy, food security, and economic growth. This is followed by a discussion on the trade, investment, transport, knowledge, and institutional connectivity in South Asia from a Sri Lankan perspective. The paper concludes that an effective and coordinated inter-regional institutional mechanism is key to the improving regional integration.Item The Role of Sri Lanka in Enhancing Connectivity between South Asia and Southeast Asia(Tokyo: Asian Development Bank Institute, 2014-07) Weerakoon, Dushni; Perera, NipuniImproving physical connectivity between South and Southeast Asia has long been recognized as a key element in promoting greater trade and investment linkages within the region. As an island economy, Sri Lanka's regional connectivity has been mainly through its main sea port in Colombo, a transshipment hub port for South Asia. Investments to expand capacity at Colombo port are underway as part of Sri Lanka's renewed efforts to develop its infrastructure following the long internal separatist conflict that ended in 2009. Despite significant improvements in physical infrastructure connectivity, Sri Lanka has made only limited headway in strengthening its trade and investment links with the rest of the region. Moreover, the country has seen a sharp decline in its overall exports-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio, which is worrying in view of the growing external debt financing of many large infrastructure projects through state-led investment initiatives. Thus, Sri Lanka needs to focus on two priority areas: engaging private investment in infrastructure by strengthening the country's institutional and regulatory environment; and implementing a more strategic trade policy geared to enhance regional integration efforts.